The tendency of patients taking out money from their own pockets to pay for medical services is rising at the level of the entire private healthcare market.
On the other hand, corporate subscriptions, namely the subscriptions companies offer as perks to their employees, came to account for 35% of receipts in the case of Medsana in 1Q, from 40% in the year-earlier period.
“Income from the contract with the Bucharest Health Insurance House (CASMB) accounts for less than 5% in our total revenue,” said the head of Medsana.
The company operates three clinics in Bucharest and Ploiesti and is one of the first private healthcare operators in Romania, as it opened the first clinic in 1996.
For 2014, Medsana expects revenue of EUR5.5 million, up 10% from the EUR5 million of 2013.
“In 2014, revenue growth will come from the rising weight of fee-for-service income, mainly on the lab services and medical imagistic segments”.
Medsana boss accounted for this tendency by the fact that many companies have reduced the budgets they have for perks granted to employees, so that many employees pay for these services themselves.
In the first three months of this year, Medsana posted revenue of EUR1.4 million and services most in demand were paraclinical ones, obstetrics-gynecology, dermatology, endocrinology or pediatric consultations.
The company, so far extremely cautious in expansion, is now announcing development plans. “We have already approved expansion plans for Bucharest and at the right moment we will start these projects. Our investment policy is prudent and we primarily want to have a sound financial balance sheet”.
On the over half a billion euro private healthcare market, Medsana is a medium-sized player.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)