28-Jul-16 Within five years, one in three US surgeries - more than double current levels – is expected to be performed with robotic systems, with surgeons sitting at computer consoles guiding mechanical arms. Companies developing new robots also plan to expand their use in India, China and other emerging markets. [image: Intuitive Surgical / Reuters]

27-Jul-16 Health departments throughout Vietnam have been ordered to publish the winning bids for the supply of medical equipment to public hospitals. The move aims to ensure consistent prices of medical equipment in the market, avoiding price hikes for the benefit of suppliers or hospitals, said the head of the Department of Medical Equipment & Construction under the Ministry of Health. [image: VNA / VNS]

19-Jul-16 India's government is planning to table a new Medical Device Act in the forthcoming winter session of Parliament. In a 11-Jul-16 meeting on the Make in India initiative for medical devices, attended by leading associations, issues such as ease of doing business, regulation, fiscal imperatives, scaling manufacturing, promoting exports, encouraging innovations and making India attractive for investment were discussed. [image: Business Standard]

05-Jul-16 The da Vinci surgery robot made by US-based Intuitive Surgical performs minimally invasive, complex surgeries safely. The Beijing United Family Hospital & Clinics (BJU) is one of very few domestic hospitals in China with this technology. The hospital performed 100 operations within the first year, especially paediatric urological operations - making BJU a pioneer in paediatric robotic surgery in China. [image: BJU / Global Times]

24-Jun-16 New Zealand’s medical device and health IT companies earned an overall turnover of NZD1.3 bn in 2015. Companies reported an average revenue growth of 29% for medical device and 35% for health IT. The sector is developing a vast range of technologies, with most in the lower risk groups for regulatory approval. [image: New Zealand Health IT]