Medical imaging industry group shares tariff concerns
The Trump administration's tariffs are creating significant challenges for medical imaging equipment manufacturers and could ultimately increase costs for U.S. hospital systems already operating on razor-thin margins, according to leaders from the imaging industry.
Radiology Business recently spoke with Richard Fabian, chair of the board of AdvaMed Imaging, at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2025 meeting in December. The medtech industry group is made up of medical imaging companies, with a focus on higher-level trends and public policy concerns.
“Tariffs are having an impact on the industry. And if you take a look at our complex supply chains, these aren't things that can be changed quickly,” Fabian said. “When you go from vendor to vendor and look at their supply chain, there are no two that are alike.”
Fabian explained that even companies that consider themselves U.S.-based manufacturers often rely on components sourced internationally, making them vulnerable to both U.S. tariffs and retaliatory tariffs imposed by other countries.
“As an example: With Fujifilm Sonosite, we are headquartered just outside of Seattle. We consider ourself made in America. However, we have a lot of components that we source outside the United States,” said Fabian, also is president and CEO of Fujifilm SonoSite.
He said shifting supply chains back to the U.S. is not a simple or fast solution.
“It's very difficult for us to try to bring some of this technology back into the United States because we live in such a regulated environment. So, nothing happens fast,” Fabian said. “There's an incredible amount of R&D qualification work, and just to change even a simple screw from one vendor to another [is challenging], let alone an entire supply chain. So, the impact on the industry is very difficult.”
In addition to supply chain hurdles, Fabian said imaging vendors have limited ability to absorb or pass along higher costs caused by tariffs. Many sales agreements with hospitals are fixed, leaving little flexibility to adjust pricing.
“We are living with hospitals that are on tremendously tight margins. As an industry, we're in a very difficult position with tariffs,” Fabian said.
He noted the downstream effect of tariffs and counter-tariffs is likely higher costs for U.S. health systems, which could further strain hospital finances and potentially affect patient access to advanced imaging technologies.
For these reasons, AdvaMed Imaging is advocating for tariff relief.
“What the industry would like to see is an exemption for medtech,” Fabian said. “Medtech is one of the gold standard industries for the United States. It's where we have incredible advantages, incredible technology, and we should be promoting our industries and our companies and what we do.”
Fabian emphasized that medical imaging companies play a critical role not only in U.S. healthcare, but globally, and warned that excessive tariffs could undermine that leadership.
"Handicapping these companies with excessive tariffs is a difficult position to take when we're trying to deliver so much value to the world,” he said.
Dave Fornell has covered healthcare for more than 17 years, with a focus in cardiology and radiology. Fornell is a 5-time winner of a Jesse H. Neal Award, the most prestigious editorial honors in the field of specialized journalism. The wins included best technical content, best use of social media and best COVID-19 coverage. Fornell was also a three-time Neal finalist for best range of work by a single author. He produces more than 100 editorial videos each year, most of them interviews with key opinion leaders in medicine. He also writes technical articles, covers key trends, conducts video hospital site visits, and is very involved with social media. E-mail: [email protected]