American Competitiveness Initiative To Benefit the Medical Device Industry

With 78 million US baby boomers, a huge population has witnessed the long-time evolution of the medical device industry. Amazing strides have been made in every medical sector—from advancements in medical imaging devices to cardiac devices (balloon catheters, stents, etc), and even to orthopedic technology (as anyone who’s had a minimally invasive hip replacement procedure might attest).

Now this population—as well as the rest of the United States—not only looks forward to the industry’s next innovations, it expect large strides to continue as an assurance of a more active, healthier quality of life. As such, President George W. Bush vowed in his latest State of the Union address to foster this innovation by introducing the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI).

While the president has had a rough run in the polls, he’s already garnered support for this initiative among medical device leaders. Both AdvaMed and the Medical Device Manufacturer’s Association immediately issued statements praising these efforts, which are designed to help ensure that the United States continues to be a leader in developing and producing lifesaving technology.     ACI will commit $5.9 billion in fiscal year 2007, and more than $136 billion over 10 years, to increase investments in research and development (R&D), strengthen education and encourage entrepreneurship and innovation. The United States currently employs about one third of all scientists and engineers and accounts for one third of global R&D spending.

ACI also proposes $380 million in Federal support to improve the quality of math, science and technological innovation in K-12 schooling, to foster a climate that enhances analytical, technical and problem-solving skills.

Furthermore, ACI will strengthen protection of intellectual property.

In his speech, Bush also noted that he hopes trade initiatives will further open foreign markets and enable more people—on a global scale—to benefit from US innovation. Perhaps of greatest interest to the medical device industry is the President’s commitment to make R&D tax credits permanent to maintain competitiveness and encourage companies to focus on designing technology that will further solidify America’s position as the world’s greatest innovator.

“With more research in both the public and private sectors, we will improve our quality of life—and ensure that America will lead the world in opportunity and innovation for decades to come,” Bush said during his speech.

With all the emphasis on math and science, not to mention foreign trade, R&D and innovation, I couldn’t help but feel at moments that the President was directly speaking to the medical product outsourcing industry. I would think that if these proposals are adopted, everyone in the industry—from OEMs to contract manufacturers to suppliers—stands to benefit from these initiatives. That said, what do you think? It’s great to hear the stance of our top industry associations (such as AdvaMed and MDMA), but I also would love to hear from individuals working on the front lines of our industry.

Sincerely,

Jennifer Whitney
Editor
[email protected]