NEW YORK – Healthcare IT and medical technology are primed for investment in 2009, according to an annual report on healthcare investing issues.
The Psilos Group, a healthcare venture capital firm, released its first annual report on an issue that it expects will shape healthcare investing in 2009 and beyond.
Because healthcare is one of the few industries that experiences growth during an economic downturn, the report asserts there are ample opportunities to invest – but concerns about what the future holds may keep wary venture capitalists away.
"In spite of the bleak near-term indicators, we predict that the United States is poised to establish a 'new healthcare economy,'" the report says. Beginning in 2009, it expects a 10-year transformational cycle that will re-define many dynamics of the American healthcare system.
According to the report, despite a more than $2 trillion healthcare sector, the federal government spends less than $1 for every $1,000 of national health spending on health systems research, making it one of the most underinvested industries in the United States.
The report says a healthcare transformation will require that "innovation gaps" in healthcare be addressed. Suggestions include increasing"health tech" funding and expanding annual investment rates to more than $1 billion in healthcare IT. But in order for the transformation to be effective, the report says. it would require the widespread adoption of IT across ambulatory, diagnostic, pharmacy and inpatient settings.
The medical technology field is another prime area for investment, the report says, because medical technology companies often require less capital and a shorter product development time than pharmaceutical or biotechnology companies.
According to the report, the convergence of medical technology with information technology, telecommunications, remote monitoring and other healthcare services has also served to increase its value, with little signs of slowing down.
