by
Loren Bonner, DOTmed News Online Editor | August 22, 2013
Others, like the non-profit Animal Medical Center in New York City, have been around for over 100 years, and have recently incorporated diagnostic imaging specialties like CT, MR and interventional radiology/interventional endoscopy.
Where these centers are located usually depends on how financially stable a community is, because most pet owners pay out of pocket for imaging services. A typical scan — say, an MRI for your dog — can range anywhere from $1,200 to $2,000. If an owner has pet insurance, it typically covers imaging.
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According to Jim Stuppino, president of AnimalScan, reimbursement for animal imaging is actually better than it is for human.
In 2009, Stuppino acquired a couple of animal MRI facilities. He said that within 18 months he was able to make a profit. He recently opened three more centers and has nine others in the works. All of the centers exclusively offer animal MRI imaging.
"It's been a tremendous growth for us over a short period of time," Stuppino told DOTmed News. "The volumes can range from 20-25 MRI scans a month and some of our centers do over a 100 scans a month based on the market and area."
The majority of Stuppino's business is mobile MRI. He buys refurbished mobile MRI units and parks them permanently at his practices.
In fact, all veterinary imaging centers use human MRI and CT scanners because OEMs, like Siemens, GE and Philips, do not manufacture dedicated ones. But specially made ultrasound and X-ray units do exist for pets.
According to Mai, UPenn's Rosenthal Imaging and Treatment Center uses a secondhand 1.5 tesla MRI scanner and a brand new 16-slice CT scanner.
While veterinary medicine may not be at the level of human medicine yet, Mai said there is a lot of collaboration going on in trying to bring knowledge from the human side to the animal side.
"It's a continuously evolving field," said Mai.
In addition to setting up MRI imaging centers, Stuppino said they are getting ready to install a million dollar MRI scanner at North Carolina State University's veterinary school of medicine.
"There's been more specialists coming out into the field and it's a scenario where they are demanding better health care for their facilities and animals," said Stuppino.
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