Expansion of centralized procurement? Will hospitals also have to make centralized purchases of CT and magnetic resonance imaging machines to cut costs?

Have you ever considered that in the future, high-end equipment such as CT machines and magnetic resonance imaging machines purchased by hospitals might be procured in a centralized manner to reduce costs, just like medicines?

Recently, relevant departments are formulating policies related to centralized procurement of medical equipment and have solicited opinions in various regions. This means that the centralized procurement of medical equipment will no longer be confined to individual provinces or specific types of equipment, but is expected to be promoted nationwide. So, what does this mean for hospitals, enterprises and the entire industry?

The trend of expanding the centralized procurement of medical equipment is obvious.

As early as 2021, Anhui Province took the lead in launching a pilot program for centralized procurement of Class B large medical equipment (such as CT, MRI, etc.), becoming the first province in the country to take the initiative. At that time, it was widely believed in the industry that medical equipment was significantly different from medical consumables, and bulk purchasing was not easy to popularize. However, it turns out that this view is overly conservative.

As various regions follow suit one after another, the scope and intensity of equipment centralized procurement are constantly expanding. For instance, many provinces such as Guangxi, Anhui, Hainan and Zhejiang have begun to promote provincial centralized procurement work. In March this year, Anhui Province launched the centralized procurement of Class B large medical equipment for the whole province in 2025, including all public medical institutions that use funds not allocated from the fiscal budget in the procurement scope. Guangxi also issued a document this year, clearly stating that in principle, centralized volume-based procurement should be organized starting from May each year, with no less than once a year.

The price reduction of equipment has become a trend, but problems also follow one after another.

The most direct effect brought about by centralized procurement is the decline in equipment prices. In some projects, the price reduction of products has even reached over 60%. However, the price reduction is not without cost. Many industry insiders have already felt troubled by the "price war". Previously, the price of some ultrasonic equipment was pushed down to over 200,000 yuan, which drew widespread attention from the industry.

Business people are concerned that if the winning bid price is significantly lowered, the profit margin of enterprises will thin, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, which may face considerable pressure and have a weakened motivation for product research and development and innovation. At the national level, the severity of the problem has also been recognized. The National Development and Reform Commission proposed at the enterprise symposium that efforts should be made to rectify the vicious competition and promote scientific and technological innovation. The National Healthcare Security Administration also emphasized the principles of "stabilizing clinical practice, ensuring quality, preventing bid rigging, and opposing internal competition".

The Ministry of Finance also issued a document at the end of last year, deciding to carry out pilot work to solve the problem of abnormally low prices in government procurement in Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai and other places. These measures indicate that the country is attempting to lower equipment prices while avoiding excessive price competition from causing harm to enterprises.

Difficulties and challenges in centralized procurement.

Although centralized procurement has brought many benefits, in actual operation, parameter formulation has become a major difficulty. Medical equipment is not like medicines that can be standardized. Devices from different manufacturers usually have their own characteristics, and the demands of hospitals at all levels and in different regions also vary greatly. Therefore, how to set parameters scientifically and reasonably to ensure the fairness and impartiality of centralized procurement while meeting the actual needs of hospitals has become an urgent problem to be solved.

The advantage of centralized equipment procurement lies in the fact that it can enhance the bargaining power with suppliers through volume-based pricing. At the same time, it is also convenient for management, which can better control procurement costs and promote the standardization of the supply process. However, when purchasing medical equipment, one should not only focus on the single purchase price but also pay attention to the long-term benefits and whether the performance of the equipment matches the demand.

The Anhui model provides a good example. It has launched a centralized bidding and procurement model of "three divisions and one integration", namely "product stratification, hospital classification, project subcontracting, and price and procurement integration". Specifically:

Product stratification has addressed the issue of the lack of a unified national quality evaluation standard for large medical equipment. Experts are organized to evaluate different devices based on their key technical parameters, classify quality and technical levels, and promote homogeneous competition.

Based on factors such as the scale level, functional requirements, and technical capabilities of each hospital, the hospital classification should be comprehensively considered to reasonably and clearly define the procurement grade.

Based on the purchase budget and functional requirements of the purchasing unit, organize experts to match the product levels with the hospital's demand grades, subcontract the project, and reasonably distinguish the technical levels among different procurement packages.

Explore the reasonable formulation and adjustment of relevant service prices and medical insurance payment standards, guide medical institutions to rationally allocate large medical equipment, and achieve the integration of centralized bidding and procurement with project pricing and payment standards.

Frequent inquiries and ineffective complaints: Prolonged procurement cycle.

Apart from the difficulty in parameter formulation, the "frequent questioning" in equipment centralized procurement projects is also a problem that cannot be ignored. At present, there are too many doubts and complaints about centralized procurement projects, which requires a lot of manpower and time to handle the complaint issues. However, the vast majority of these complaints are invalid.

This issue has significantly affected the process of equipment procurement and usage, leading to an extension of the procurement cycle. Enterprises should fully understand the relevant policies, use their rights prudently, and not file complaints at will just because the complaint cost is low. In the long run, this is not conducive to the development of the industry.

All parties should jointly build sound rules and seek a balance point.

Although the overall competition in the industry is quite fierce, it is not difficult to find after sorting out the projects in various regions that many centralized procurement projects were rejected due to the number of responding enterprises being less than three. During the CMEF, some hospital staff also called on enterprises to actively participate in centralized procurement projects.

For the purchasers, how to scientifically and reasonably set parameters to reflect the fairness and impartiality of centralized procurement while meeting the actual needs of clinical practice, scientific research and teaching in hospitals still requires continuous exploration. During the initial research, the parameters provided by the enterprise were inaccurate, which greatly increased the difficulty of subsequent parameter formulation and also affected the bidding outcome.

For hospitals, they hope to purchase high-quality equipment needed for clinical use within their budget. Enterprises, on the other hand, hope to expand their markets and ensure the sustainable development of the industry. Meanwhile, relevant departments hope to squeeze out the excessive water content in product prices through centralized procurement, so that the benefits of centralized procurement price reduction can reach the people. The three parties are still seeking a benign balance point.

Centralized procurement is both an opportunity and a challenge.

Overall, the introduction of the centralized procurement policy for medical equipment presents both opportunities and challenges.

For hospitals, it offers an opportunity to obtain high-quality equipment at a lower price. For enterprises, it is a test of technological innovation and market expansion. For the entire industry, it means a more standardized and transparent development environment.

In the future, with the continuous improvement and optimization of centralized procurement policies, we have every reason to believe that the medical equipment industry will usher in a healthier and more sustainable development situation. Of course, all of this is predicated on the joint efforts of all parties to find a balance point that can both ensure product quality and take into account the interests of all parties.