Report: Med tech industry adds $24.6B to U.S. economy
In nearly all states, earnings in the medical technology industry are above state averages for the private marketplace, and the industry requires a skilled and educated workforce that can command such earnings, according to a report released by Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed).

Prepared for AdvaMed by the Lewin Group, the report examined the medical technology industry’s economic impact on the U.S. and found that the medical technology industry is a strong contributor to the U.S. economy, responsible in 2008 for nearly 423,000 jobs and $24.6 billion in annual payroll, as well as almost $136 billion worth of products sold.

Economic benefits of the medical technology industry go hand-in-hand with the patient benefits in the communities and states in which they operate, according to the report prepared for the Washington, D.C.-based AdvaMed.

“[B]etween 2005 and 2008, the number of workers employed by industry increased 12.5 percent; the payroll increased 11.4 percent; and the total worth of products sold also increased 11.6 percent,” stated the report. “In addition, salaries in the medical technology industry are 40 percent above the national average ($58,000 vs. $42,000).”

Large states generally had the highest medical technology industry employment in 2007, the report noted: California had nearly 84,000 medical technology workers, followed by Minnesota, then Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Florida, with 21,700 to 26,900 medical technology workers each.

A number of smaller states had high concentrations of medical technology industry jobs. Minnesota and Utah had the highest concentration of medical technology jobs relative to total employment.

According to the report, medical technology jobs, payroll and sales have strong and positive multiplier effects on economies of individual states.
 
On average, within each state:
  • Each medical technology job generates an additional 1.5 jobs;
  • Each medical technology payroll dollar generates an additional 90 cents in payroll; and
  • Each dollar of medical technology sales generates an additional 90 cents in sales.

“Beyond the medical value of the industry, the direct and indirect benefits of the employment, earnings and shipments sum to a significant contribution to the national economy,” concluded the report. “As the economy continues to recover from the current climate, the medical technology industry’s economic impacts to the states should be revisited to document future growth.”

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