From Access to Innovation: How India is Redefining the Future of MedTech

Imagine a 58-year-old farmer in Jalgaon, Maharashtra, experiencing recurring chest discomfort. A decade ago, his path to diagnosis might have meant a day-long journey to Pune or Mumbai, navigating long waiting lists and high costs. Today, he can walk into a local facility equipped with advanced intravascular imaging technology, receive a diagnosis within hours, and begin treatment without leaving his community. The change is just as striking for clinicians — a young cardiologist in Indore now has access to the same advanced imaging tools as a peer in Boston or Tokyo, creating a level playing field for doctors and patients alike. Across India, similar shifts are underway, bringing advanced care from city hospitals to the heart of small-town India.

The Rising Demand

India’s medical device industry is growing at a pace. Valued at close to US$12 billion in 2024, it is projected to reach US$50 billion by 2030. This reflects a combination of factors: a growing middle class seeking better healthcare outcomes, an ageing population with rising incidence of chronic diseases, government investment in healthcare infrastructure beyond metros, and increasing insurance coverage making advanced treatments more affordable.

The pace of growth is matched by a demand for world-class solutions that can reach patients everywhere. India is evolving from a consumer of global innovation to a creator shaping the future of MedTech.

This growing influence was on full display at the recent APAC MedTech Forum 2025 in New Delhi, where industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators came together to discuss building robust healthcare systems, equitable access, and patient-centered innovation. The conversations underscored India’s expanding role in the global MedTech dialogue and its potential to set benchmarks for other emerging markets.

India’s Appetite for MedTech Leadership

Few countries combine the strengths needed to lead this transformation as effectively as India. The nation’s vast and diverse patient base offers unmatched scale. Its proven ability to deliver cost-effective solutions ensures affordability. A deep pool of engineering and clinical talent drives innovation, while rapid adoption of digital health platforms extends reach into even the most remote areas.

India’s mix of scale, affordability, talent, and digital capability is inspiring domestic innovators and global MedTech leaders to invest in ways that strengthen local healthcare and establish the country as a global center for innovation, manufacturing, and R&D.

Patient-First Innovation in Action

A defining feature of this shift is a patient-first approach — ensuring advanced therapies are available, accessible and safely adopted across geographies.

For us at Boston Scientific, being part of India’s healthcare journey has meant building an integrated ecosystem that combines commercial operations, research and development (R&D), information technology and global business services. This “One Boston Scientific India” model embeds innovation into the local healthcare fabric while also contributing to the company’s global network.

In 2024 alone, we introduced five breakthrough solutions in India, from AVVIGO™ + to Rezūm™. Technology has the ability to enhance outcomes, and its value is magnified when paired with training and expertise. That’s why our EDUCARE platform was used to train thousands of clinicians and technicians last year, enabling advanced procedures to be performed safely on patients across hospitals including emerging healthcare hubs.

And behind those numbers are real stories — of young physicians in cities like Indore and Siliguri gaining access to world-class training, and of patients in emerging healthcare hubs benefitting from therapies once available only in metros. These are the moments that bring our mission — advancing science for life — to life.

Boston Scientific’s R&D Leadership in India

This commitment to patient access goes hand in hand with our growing role as a creator of MedTech innovation in India. Our R&D journey here began in Gurgaon in 2014, with our second R&D center opening in Pune in 2022 and expanding in 2024.

Our India-based teams contribute across the company’s entire MedTech value chain — from designing and prototyping devices, to rigorous testing and refinement, to preparing them for commercialization in India and globally. This integrated approach ensures that innovations developed here meet the highest international standards and can benefit patients worldwide.

For us, “Made in India” is more than manufacturing, it means “innovate and develop in India, for India and for the world.” So far, our R&D team in India has filed close to 300 patents, underscoring its influence in shaping next-generation therapies.

Working seamlessly with global counterparts across all business units, our R&D India is not just an outsourcing arm — it is a core part of Boston Scientific’s global innovation engine, with India serving as a vital node in a worldwide MedTech network.

The Ecosystem Imperative

For India to fully realize its MedTech potential, technology adoption must be matched by ecosystem alignment. Regulatory harmonization can help speed up approvals without compromising safety. Digital integration can connect patients, providers, and data to improve outcomes. Public-private partnerships can extend advanced care into underserved regions. And sustained investment in talent and infrastructure will ensure that innovation momentum is not just achieved but maintained.

Boston Scientific works with healthcare providers, public institutions and academic partners to ensure that innovation translates into greater access and better outcomes for patients everywhere.

The Road Ahead

The question is no longer whether India can lead in MedTech. It is how quickly it can align its ecosystem to sustain that leadership. The progress of the past decade has shown what’s possible: advanced therapies reaching towns that once lacked basic facilities, doctors in emerging hubs performing procedures once limited to major metros, and innovations born in India improving lives here and around the world. The next chapter will be defined not by geography, but by how far and how fast we can take this transformation.

• The article is co-authored by Madan R. Krishnan, Vice President & Managing Director, Asia Pacific Growth Markets, and Sanjeev Pandya, Vice President & Site Leader, India R&D, Boston Scientific

Disclaimer: This article has been produced on behalf of the brand by HT Syndication

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