Why Brazil?
Here's why you should consider selling your medical devices in Brazil
Brazil
in Numbers
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Brazil is the 7th largest populated country in the world, with an estimated population of 215 million inhabitants and a total area of 8.515.767 km².
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The country has the 9th largest GDP in the world and is considered an advanced emerging economy.
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It has the largest healthcare market in Latin America and the 2nd largest in the Americas. According to the World Bank, in 2021 private and public healthcare expenses in Brazil comprised over 9% of its GDP, which represents US$ 161 billion.
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Brazil has a Unified Healthcare System (Sistema Único de Saúde, SUS), which provides free access to medical services to all Brazilian citizens. The public health system is the sole provider of health services to approximately 72% of the population, and it is estimated that over 50 million Brazilians have access to the private healthcare system as well.
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There are over 420,000 registered health establishments in the country, including over 7,300 hospitals, 62% of which are privately-owned, according to the Brazilian Federation of Hospitals and the National Health Confederation.
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As of 2022, there were 427,097 hospital beds, 710 health insurance providers, and 546,000 physicians. From January to December 2023, there was a total of over 13 million hospitalizations (about 5.6% higher than in the same period of 2022) and over 5 million surgeries (10.2% higher).
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The volume of purchases by SUS – which had decreased during the pandemic – reached its highest levels ever in 2023. There was a 13% increase in total spending on medical devices in comparison with the previous year.
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The projected revenue for this market is expected to reach US$ 10.42 billion in 2024 with an annual growth rate of 7%, resulting in a market volume of US$ 14.65 billion by 2029.
The Scenario for Medical Devices
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There are over 100,000 medical devices with valid market authorizations (“registro” or “notificação”) issued by Anvisa, of which approximately 75% are manufactured abroad. This means that a significant portion of health products are imported, due to various characteristics of the Brazilian market and the products themselves. Therefore, importers play an important role by offering more options to patients and health service providers.
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Most of the medical devices produced in Brazil are not manufactured by national companies, but by large multinationals that have set up a manufacturing plant in the country. However, these companies will usually sell their products at a higher price, in order to compensate for their investment. In this scenario, imported products are a reasonable, affordable option – and sometimes the only option available.
Despite the recent economic downturn, private and public hospitals still have great purchasing power, and with continued expansion of Brazil’s private health care sector, the market is expected to grow. The nods in the direction of the revision of SUS reimbursement tables, the reactivation of some health programs, and structural measures such as the Tax Reform, represent a positive counterpoint to the challenging scenario.
​Do you see the potential and want to join the Brazilian market, but worry about the bureaucracy?
Do you want to sell your products in Brazil but don’t know where to start?
We are here to help!
QualiThings is your one-stop shop for everything you need to enter the Brazilian market of medical devices.
