They cost about two and a half million dollars. But radiology departments are the drivers of most hospitals these days; they bring in most of the revenue so they get the huge suites and the radiologists get the fanciest toys and the most influence. It’s amazing what they can do these days.
People who complain about the costs of health care today must bear in mind that it cost $500 million to develop this thing and the cost has to be recouped somehow, so the pricetag is high, and then the hospitals have to charge insurance carriers a lot to recoup the cost of the purchase.
Obamacare is going to put one of these in a hospital a thousand miles away from you and then make you wait six months for an appointment. By the time they can fit you in, your cancer will have metastasized and the radiologists will be able to tell you with great precision how many more days you have before you croak. Enjoy.
I bet the oil industry will snap these up, too, for visualizing oil formations.