Top Trends in Wholesale Medical Supplies

Change is inevitable. For the wholesale medical supply industry, this almost goes without saying. Some changes are simply short-term trends, while others are not going out of style anytime soon.

The healthcare industry continues to change through technology, disaster, regulations and more. With the recent effects of Covid-19, it is hard to tell where exactly the industry is heading and how to manage best practices. For now, here are the current top trends in wholesale medical supplies to know and understand. 

Rising Tariffs

International trade wars have been plaguing the United States for the past several months. Essentially, taxes have been placed on products or materials that are being imported or exported.

Many sectors of business have been affected by this. The medical supply industry however had many tariffs lifted during the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak. For production and management of certain industries, the fees keep rising and alternate solutions are being sought after. Many companies are choosing not to ride this one out.

Barcoding

Scanning barcodes at the individual level is increasing. Tracking supplies is important and smaller units are being barcoded at higher averages. For example, manufacturers barcoded roughly 74 percent of individual items in 2016. That’s compared to over 71 percent of product cases and over 51 percent of product pallets.

On-Demand Freight

Transportation is one of the highest expenses associated within the supply chain for wholesale medical supply companies. It is a factor and a hurdle that plays into many industries right now as companies continue to push delivery options. Logistics companies are being established. The trend is to stand out above the rest and find a way to bring on-demand products to consumers in a cost-effective way.

Big Data

Enhancing your supply chain through big data is another top trend in the wholesale medical supply industry. By using big data, suppliers can save big by using informed analytics. Besides a financial savings aspect, patients also prosper through more efficient processes. Big data is a big time saver.

Specialty Drugs Are Huge

In 2016, 98 percent of pharmaceutical sales handled by distributors were for prescription drugs. Just 2 percent came from non-prescription drugs, health care items, durable medical equipment (DME), home health products and general merchandise. Brand name specialty drugs continue to soar and continue to be important for wholesale medical suppliers.

Automation

Automation in any industry is hot right now. In the long run, it can decrease labor costs while improving accuracy in production. Rapid advances in technology have this even more of a reality. The supply chain has never been as transparent as it is today. However, there still needs to be human oversight and higher-level planning.

Regulations

The evolution of regulations might always be a trending topic for wholesale medical suppliers and the supply chain. The advancement of new technology always demands more oversight and new regulation. Oftentimes, privacy and the use of big data trigger laws. The healthcare field must always stay diligent in being accurate and reliable with how they manage private information. Sometimes this does require a large investment into technology, but it tends to be worthwhile.

Trends in Statistics

Lastly, statistics tend to show a trend of where the industry is going. Wholesale medical suppliers can look into the number and determine where to proceed and which trend to truly take heed of. 

• Through 2022, the medical industry is likely to grow by 4%.
• The largest cost within the industry is labor, averaging 33% of most budgets. 
• Automated storage and retrieval systems can increase accuracy in orders by up to 99%.
• Reducing costs is a priority for 85% of medical experts.
• Suppliers say that analytics are a primary focus for them.
• Industry revenue grew 16% in the five years leading to 2018. This trend continues on. 
• Between 2012 and 2017, medical supply wholesaling grew at 1.7% annually.
• Nearly 98% of the industry employs less than 100 people.
• Those with optimized supply chains generally have 15% overall costs with less than 50% inventory holdings. They also have a faster cash-to-cash cycle by nearly three times compared to under-optimized supply chains.
• A survey found that 20% of operations identified fluctuating customer demand as the biggest challenge that they face. 

Final Thoughts on Trends in Wholesale Medical Supplies

Trends in any industry can change in the blink of an eye. However, most industries move forward with ingenuity, technology, and the basic willingness to change. It is important to understand these trends to be able to roll with the punches or jump at the chance to advance your company forward for more profit and customer convenience.