Medtronic Medical Devices Firm to Provide Financial Assistance to Patients in the US

The company plans to offer high priced devices like stents, heart valves and pacemakers on monthly installments to low-income, underserved patients.

The tried and tested model by Medical devices firm Medtronic Plc, which offers financial assistance to needy patients in India is likely to provide relief to patients in the US, their home ground.

High priced devices like stents, heart valves and pacemakers will be offered on monthly installments to low-income, under-served patients in the US who are not covered under any health insurance scheme. The plan is an extension of Medtronic's 'Healthy Heart for All' initiative, which was tailored exclusively for India and launched in 2010.

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This revolutionary business model is first of its kinda and will attempt to bridge structural barriers of accessibility and affordability for patients, who would have gone largely undetected and untreated. "India is an ideal incubator of innovations," said Milind Shah, managing director at Medtronic India. "What works in India can work anywhere. We (Indians)pay out of pocket, are challenged from the financial point of view, and we always measure the costs versus the benefits."

Medtronic Plc has partnered with over 100 Indian hospitals for its access initiative that includes screening camps and patient counseling, besides financial assistance.

The company said around 167,000 patients have undergone screenings for heart diseases since the program was launched. "The cumulative collection ratio for the financial assistance offered under Healthy Heart For All is around 95 percent," the company told.

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Source-Medindia

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