HONDURAS IMPORT REGULATIONS FOR USED MEDICAL EQUIPMENT

1. This cable is in response to reftel, which requested an
update on the feasibility of exporting used medical
equipment to Honduras.



2. According to the Honduran Customs and Tax Division,
there are no quotas for the importation of remanufactured,
rebuilt, and/or used medical equipment to Honduras. There
are no tariffs on most imported medical devices considered
to be capital goods, including used equipment. For
consumable medical products, tariffs range from 0 to 15
percent. A Customs agent carries out the appraisals for
remanufactured, rebuilt, and/or used medical devices,
including reprocessed, single-use devices at the port of
entry. (These appraisals are used to determine applicable
sales taxes.) Used medical equipment and supplies are not
subject to government certification, inspection, or
regulation.



3. According to a major U.S. medical equipment supplier,
Honduras is the number one importer of medical equipment in
the Central American region, making it an important market
for U.S. medical equipment exporters. One manufacturer has
sold magnetic resonance equipment to private hospitals in
San Pedro Sula, making Honduras one of the first countries
in the Latin American region to import this kind of
sophisticated technology in the health sector.



4. At present, public health institutions are only allowed to
purchase medical equipment and supplies through public and
international bids. However, these requests for bids typically
solicit new equipment, rather than used. Bids are managed
through UNDP (see www.undp.un.hn/licitaciones), with the funds
for purchasing products often provided by the World Bank, Inter-
American Bank for Development, or international donors. Each
international funding organization specifies the bidding
procedures and equipment specifications.


5. Due to a marked decrease in the availability of international
development funds for medical equipment purchases, hospitals are
beginning to secure medical equipment through a mechanism called
"Por Dato." Under this system, a contract is signed, and the
medical facility pays a fee based upon equipment usage. It is
not considered a finance lease, as at the end of the contract
period, the equipment is returned to a local provider. The
medical facility has no intention of keeping the equipment. Any
company providing equipment under this system must be registered
as distributors/representatives in the Ministry of Industry and
Commerce.


6. Approximately 30 percent of medical equipment imported into
Honduras is used or re-conditioned. The main buyers of
refurbished/used equipment are private hospitals. An increasing
number of opportunities are opening to companies who supply parts
and service for medical equipment. Even though the government
doesn't purchase used equipment, it sometimes obtains this
equipment from foreign countries and will, therefore, be in need
of local technical service and parts.


7. The medical equipment brands of greatest demand in Honduras
are General Electric, Storz, Medtronic, Ortosintese, Getinge
Casde, Wlchallyn, and Aesculap. Among the best prospects are X-
ray and monitoring equipment, hospital beds, wheelchairs,
uniforms, lab coats, stethoscopes, liftman stethoscopes,
thermometers, breast pumps, scissors, dental care equipment,
digital blood pressure equipment, ophthalmoscopes, eye exam kits,
examination gloves, heart rate monitoring equipment, X-ray view
boxes, blood chemistry and collection equipment, sterilizing
equipment, instrument cleaners, instrument lubricants, ultrasonic
cleaners, rapid diagnostic test kits, surgery and intensive-care
equipment, and disposable medical supplies.


8. For additional information on the market for used and
refurbished medical equipment in Honduras, please contact Roy
Alonzo at the Commercial Service Office in Tegucigalpa, Honduras,
tel. (504) 238-5114, fax (504) 238-2888, Roy.Alonzo@mail.doc.gov.
PIERCE