The growth rate of the global medical
equipment leasing market is outstripping that of the medical
equipment market generally, according to research by Siemens
Financial Services (SFS).
The Germany-based subsidiary of manufacturer
Siemens, which specialises in healthcare equipment leasing, said
the increase in leasing is helping to free-up capital for frontline
services.
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The leasing market for medical equipment is
expanding at a rate of 6.5% compared to a 5% growth rate in the
medical device market, according to SFS research.
In 2011, the European market for medical
equipment leasing was estimated at €8.4bn and is projected to reach
€11.9bn by 2017, giving a compound annual growth rate of 5.8%
between 2009 and 2017.
“Due to budgetary constraints, leasing is
growing as a preferred alternative for financing medical technology
in countries such as Germany, France, and the UK,” the report
said.
“An increasingly ageing population and a rise
in the incidence of chronic diseases in Western Europe have
resulted in a higher demand for patient monitoring devices in
hospitals and in homecare settings, further encouraging the use of
leasing for acquisition of medical equipment.”
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NHS frozen capital
The report, entitled Melting the Iceberg:
A study providing evidence that asset finance is reducing the
burden of ‘frozen capital’ in global healthcare markets,
argues leasing is helping to release ‘frozen capital’ – capital
spent on purchasing leasable equipment outright which could be
deployed elsewhere – for use in frontline services.
The research calculated frozen capital in the
German, UK and French healthcare markets at €5.1bn, €2.4bn and
€2.3bn, respectively.
David Martin, general manager for SFS in the
UK, said: “The magnitude of frozen capital in the NHS is still very
high.
“In light of stretched public capital and
healthcare budget pressure, healthcare financial managers can no
longer afford to tie up or freeze precious and scarce public sector
capital through outright equipment purchase.
“They are now prompted to look for efficient
financing techniques such as leasing and rental for capital asset
acquisition, where the cost of equipment can be spread in regular
monthly payments over its useful lifetime, aligned with actual
efficiency gains enabled by up-to-date medical technology.
“In a climate of fiscal austerity, asset
finance will prove to be a particularly attractive financing tool,”
he said.
Research for the report, which will shortly become available
online took place over the period February to April 2012 using
a wide variety of public and private sources across nine countries;
Germany, France, United Kingdom, Spain, China, Poland, Turkey,
India and Russia.
grant.collinson@vrlfinancialnews.com
