“There are few subjects more important than the dramatic developments taking place in the medical technology industry,” reports Commerce Secretary Gary Locke keynote speaker at the AdvaMed2010 Medical Technology Conference held October 18-20 in Washington D.C. Over 1,700 medical device and diagnostics leaders were on hand to listen to the Secretary’s assessment that the U.S. med tech industry is strategically positioned to remain a vibrant, progressive industry and a dominant player in the global market for the foreseeable future.
The Secretary reported that the President’s National Export Initiative (NEI) is working to increase exports in general but is also expanding opportunities for med tech companies. Several promotional export efforts are underway. For example, NEI is planning a series of med tech seminars in 2011, working to improve access to credit especially for small and medium-sized businesses, and in addition, the Export-Import Bank has devised a Medical Technologies Initiative to enable more buyers to qualify for Export-Import support.
The Department of Commerce is actively engaged in working with key emerging markets to promote trade for med tech companies in countries such as:
• China—U.S med tech exports to China are projected to increase by 5 to 10 percent annually over the next five years as China implements healthcare reforms and expands health insurance coverage. Last year, U.S. medical device exports to China including Hong Kong exceeded $1.2 billion
• India—Medical product imports in India have increased by a compounded annual growth rate of 12 percent over the past 20 years. This pace of growth is expected to continue, because high-quality healthcare products are sought after by India’s growing middle class with a population around 300 million that has rising disposable income and increasing medical expectations
• Brazil—Compounded annual growth rate for total market size and med tech imports in the country have exceeded 20 percent from 2004 to 2009. The Commerce Department is concerned about recent proposals to restrict market access and these issues are being addressed though U.S. / Brazil Commercial Dialogue. “Brazil Trade Net” is the trade promotion web site for Brazil’s Ministry of External Relations and is in place to stimulate exports and to attract direct investment to the country
• South Korea/ASEAN—South Korea is one of the largest markets for medical devices with a market value expected to exceed $3 billion in 2010. Within the ASEAN countries, healthcare is a priority with plans to modernize and integrate healthcare sectors across the region. A number of Southeast Asian countries including Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand have compounded annual growth rates exceeding 10 percent over the past five years
To attract businesses to Puerto Rico, Salvatore Casale-Villani, Esq. an exhibitor at AdvaMed 2010, explained that Puerto Rico now has 15 top selling medical device manufacturers located on the island. He reports that medical device companies have invested over $600 million on the island since FY 2007. Building on 40 years plus of experience as a worldwide hub for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals, Puerto Rico is looking forward to the next wave of life sciences development.
Doing business in Puerto Rico enables companies to operate within a U.S. jurisdiction while taking advantage of a foreign tax structure. An R &D incentive provides incentives based on increased R& D corporate spending and/or working with an academic researcher on the island.
Also, researchers from Puerto Rico’s universities and research centers have access to federal research funding from federal agencies such as NSF, NIH, NCI, NOAA, and NASA. There are more than 30 federally funded research programs currently underway in the biosciences area on the island and today there are over 150 clinical trials being conducted on cancer, HIV, metabolic disorders, and infectious diseases.
For more information on doing business in Puerto Rico, go to www.pridco.com or contact Salvatore Casale-Villani,Esq at (787) 764-1175 ext (4009) or email scasale@pridco.com.
For more information on AdvaMed2010 or on the future 2011 AdvaMed Conference to be held September 26-28, 2011 in Washington D.C., go to www.advamed.org.
