Med-tech giants Medtronic Inc. and Abbott Laboratories won the first round of medical-device contracts awarded by SharedClarity, a joint venture that covers roughly 135 U.S. hospitals.
The hospitals will now buy most of their stents — both drug-eluting and bare-metal — from Fridley-based Medtronic and Abbott, based in Illinois, Modern Healthcare magazine reports.
UnitedHealth Group Inc. and three health systems launched Arizona-based SharedClarity in 2012. The group studies which medical devices are most effective and uses that information to negotiate contracts with med-tech companies.
The new contracts will lead to “significant double-digit savings” for SharedClarity members, the organization’s president, Mark West, told Modern Healthcare. One health system will reduce its stent costs by 40 percent.
Medtronic, Abbott and Boston Scientific Corp., which has significant operations in the Twin Cities, are the only U.S. stent manufacturers.
Medical devices are increasingly in the crosshairs of hospital executives seeking to cut costs. In the Twin Cities, Allina Health recently trimmed its expenses by reducing the number of hip implants its 11 hospitals offer to two, down from 13.
SharedClarity plans to study about 30 medical devices.
Date: Mar 3, 2014