Solutions to combat cost pressures & operational challenges
Capital equipment planning is a significant balancing act for health systems, requiring leaders to weigh clinical needs, financial considerations and long-term operational impact. Today, tighter margins, supply chain volatility and rising demand for advanced technology are driving a more strategic, data-driven approach.
Across large member systems such as HCA Healthcare and Tenet Healthcare, teams are focused on proactive, enterprisewide planning and purchasing. They are also turning to partners like HealthTrust Performance Group for innovative sourcing strategies such as Group Buys.
Capital planning best practices
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Standardize equipment across the enterprise
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Leverage biomed & asset data for lifecycle planning
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Align purchasing with Group Buy cycles
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Evaluate total cost of ownership, not just price
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Engage clinical, finance & supply chain leaders early
Enterprisewide strategies
Historically, decisions around capital equipment purchases were often made at the local facility level, resulting in wide variability across health systems. That decentralization created inefficiencies in pricing, maintenance, training and product lifecycle.
Today, many organizations are standardizing equipment and aggregating demand across facilities. At HCA Healthcare, this approach is already delivering measurable impact, including the coordinated purchase of approximately 180 ventilators, 450 defibrillators and a phased replacement of nearly 800 hemodialysis machines over three years, strengthening pricing leverage and enabling more predictable lifecycle assessment.
This level of coordination is made possible by improved visibility into asset inventories. Leaders within HCA Healthcare are leveraging data across more than 850,000 biomed assets to understand utilization, age and replacement timelines, enabling a shift toward proactive lifecycle management.
“We are taking an approach to standardize equipment configuration across the entire organization,” explains Jared Dougherty, Associate Vice President of Medical Capital Equipment Sourcing for HealthTrust Supply Chain, supporting HCA Healthcare.
The power of cross-functional collaboration
Effective capital planning doesn’t happen in a silo. It requires alignment across departments, including clinical leadership, finance, supply chain, IT and operations.
“Each equipment standard is vetted through the appropriate service line leadership, whether that’s nursing, surgical services or cardiovascular,” Dougherty explains. This collaboration ensures decisions reflect clinical outcomes, patient safety and operational efficiency, not just cost.
For example, while revenue-generating equipment often receives priority, leaders at HCA Healthcare recognize the downstream impact of foundational assets like beds, stretchers and infusion pumps, which directly impact patient safety and throughput if they are not properly maintained or become outdated.
Total cost of ownership
One of the most significant shifts in capital planning is moving beyond sticker price to total cost of ownership.
“The initial purchase price may only represent 30% to 40% of the lifetime cost,” says Eddie Day, Manager, Capital Equipment Services, HealthTrust.
Examining purchases with all these factors in mind can help organizations avoid costly surprises and make more informed decisions.
Where HealthTrust fits in
HealthTrust supports these efforts through national contracting, market intelligence and sourcing expertise. One of its most valuable tools is the electronic quote review (EQR) platform, which analyzes quotes line by line to ensure pricing accuracy and favorable terms.
“We often see a 20% to 30% error rate on quotes that come through the system,” Dougherty says.
Beyond pricing, HealthTrust evaluates shipping, warranties, freight and payment terms, helping members avoid hidden risks and costs.
Equally important is benchmarking. With access to pricing data across a broad membership base, HealthTrust can identify pricing disparities and help members negotiate more effectively.
“We can see what facilities across the country are paying and use that data to drive better value,” Day explains. For instance, what appears to be a competitive 20% discount may fall short against national benchmarks—insight that helps HealthTrust close pricing gaps and ensure fair market value.
The strategic advantage of Group Buys
At the center of HealthTrust’s value proposition is its Group Buy program, an innovative purchasing approach that delivers additional savings on capital equipment. While the value of Group Buys is clear, maximizing that value requires coordination and planning. “One of the biggest challenges is timing,” says Eric Brauer, HealthTrust’s Senior Director of Strategic Sourcing for Group Buys.
Suppliers often align Group Buys with their fiscal cycles, while health systems operate within fixed capital budgets, creating cycles that may not coincide. The most successful organizations bridge that gap by forecasting needs and aligning purchases with known Group Buy cycles.
In addition, health systems can achieve even greater savings by taking advantage of time-limited opportunities that HealthTrust orchestrates.
“Think of it as a short-term, additional discount on top of the contracted price,” Brauer adds.
For organizations that plan ahead, the impact can be significant. When a supplier consistently offers annual discounts, organizations may delay purchases to coincide with that window, unlocking meaningful savings without additional negotiation.
Standardization & prioritization
Another key strategy is standardization. By narrowing the range of approved suppliers and configurations, health systems can:
- Simplify training and maintenance
- Reduce variation in care delivery
- Strengthen negotiating leverage
At the same time, prioritization is essential. Not all capital investments deliver equal value, and leaders must balance immediate needs with long-term strategy. Increasingly, organizations are using data analytics to guide these decisions, identifying aging assets, forecasting replacement needs and aligning investments with clinical priorities.
Some systems also incorporate structured competition into their sourcing strategies. At Tenet, for example, primary and secondary supplier models are used to ensure both standardization and competitive pricing. Facilities are required to evaluate the primary supplier first, creating a consistent baseline before exploring alternative options.
A more integrated future
Capital equipment planning is becoming more sophisticated, collaborative and data driven with emerging innovations, such as centralized asset platforms and predictive analytics. These tools promise to further enhance visibility and decision-making. Meanwhile, programs like HealthTrust Group Buys demonstrate the power of aligning strategy with market opportunity.
“The goal is simple: Reduce the acquisition cost of capital equipment while helping providers make more strategic, well-timed investment decisions,” says Brauer.
Ignite the savings inherent in Group Buys before your next capital purchase. Visit “Group Buys” within the Resources section of the HealthTrust Member Portal for details or contact eric.brauer@healthtrustpg.com for more information.
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