Valencia outsources 380,000 MRI and ultrasound scans for $69Mn
- Valencia’s health department outsourced 380,126 diagnostic tests from January 2024 to Sept. 17, 2026.
- Levante-EMV estimates the cost at €61.7 million ($69.2Mn).
- Spending peaked in 2024 at €25.9 million ($29Mn).
- An MRI costs €257.86 ($289) on average under the region’s fee law.
VALENCIA, SPAIN — The Valencian regional health department has sent 380,126 diagnostic tests, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and ultrasounds, to the private sector since January 2024, at an estimated cost of €61.7 million (about $69.2 million).
The figure runs from Jan. 1, 2024, to Sept. 17, 2026, within the current regional government’s term.
How the cost was estimated
The Conselleria de Sanidad broke the tests into 13 types in a parliamentary answer to the Socialist party (PSPV), according to Levante-EMV.
The department gave the number of each test but not the exact amount paid to private providers, so the newspaper priced the tests using the estimated rates in the region’s fee law.
Spending peaked in 2024 at €25.9 million ($29 million), followed by €21.1 million ($23.7 million) in 2025 and €14.7 million ($16.5 million) so far this year.
Under the same method, the previous Botànic government spent €22.8 million ($25.6 million) on 94,610 diagnostic tests in 2022, its last full year in office.
What each scan costs
The MRI is the most expensive test on average, at €257.86 ($289) under the fee law.
Prices run from €185 for a neck scan without contrast to €351.50 for a cardiac scan with contrast, while a standard ultrasound costs €93.62 ($105).
Staff shortages behind the shift
La Fe hospital in Valencia, the region’s largest, outsourced 36,519 diagnostic tests in 2023 and paid €2.3 million ($2.6 million) to private providers, while performing 41,626 with its own equipment.
Luis Bonmatí, director of the hospital’s medical imaging clinical area, said the tests sent out are the least complex and that the decision was driven by a shortage of staff.
Regional health minister Marciano Gómez has consistently backed using private healthcare to guarantee care.
The budget line for the region’s Plan de Choque, which aims to cut waiting lists, has grown steadily during his term.
PSPV deputy Yaissel Sánchez said she does not object to occasional collaboration with the private sector, but criticized using it as a constant crutch.
More than 78,000 people in the region are waiting for surgery, the highest level of the current term.
What health systems can take from it
Valencia’s figures show healthcare outsourcing of low-complexity diagnostics growing beyond waiting-list programs into a recurring cost.
Health systems weighing outsourcing of imaging can price each test against their own staffing and equipment capacity.
The ultimate guide to outsourcing sets out how to structure and monitor such contracts.
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Disclosure: Outsource Accelerator uses AI tools in the backend of its editorial workflow. Every article is reviewed and verified by a human editor before publication.
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