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CNBC.com Bernie Madoff |
Several hospitals and/or their foundations are among his alleged victims. A loss that can only make a bad situation worse given the financial shape many hospitals find themselves in during this economic and credit crisis.
Mike Weinstein, the medical device guy at JPMorgan, is out with a significant survey today of more than 50 hospital chief financial officers that he and his team did over the past few weeks.They're the people who control the purse strings when it comes to buying stuff from the companies Weinstein covers. So, we're primarily talking about all sorts of parts for people from stents to hips, although Weinstein's research touches on the purchased of everyday hospital supplies as well.
In his research note to clients Weinstein says, "Our field work confirms the mounting anecdotal evidence that hospitals are coming under increasing pressure, leading to cost controls and reduced capital spending...."
Weinstein says half of the bean counters they talked to are looking for the best deal. The analyst says another readout of the survey is that CFOs are more aggressively managing inventories. That means hospitals might be keeping fewer stents on hand, for example, from companies like Johnson & Johnson [JNJ
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But Weinstein says the biggest capex cuts will likely be in building renovation projects, information technology, beds and other items that have a low return on investment. Overall, the survey indicates that hospital capex in 2009 will be flat compared to this year.
"The headline responses are bleak," Weinstein writes. "Hospital capital spending trends are deteriorating, largely as expected, but the impact and timing here will vary across categories and companies."
It's a situation I blogged about earlier this year when CNBC's parent company GE[GE
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] reported weakness in its healthcare business. Nearly nine months later, it's still playing out and at least according to this JPM survey will linger well into next year.
Questions? Comments?
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