A recent BBC News article has brought the question of the future costs of prosthetics into the spotlight. The war in Ukraine has seen many thousands of people tragically suffer limb loss, including the British aid worker Eddy Scott who lost an arm and a leg in a drone strike.

Eddy has talked of the provision provided by Superhumans, a charity which offers prosthetics to soldiers and civilians caught up in the conflict, including life-changing and state of the art designs by well-known manufacturers such as Ottobock.  

The significant increase in demand for prosthetics across Ukraine has caused a surge in domestic companies producing high-tech products at much lower cost. The Ukrainian company, Esper Bionics is able to produce an award-winning AI-powered bionic hand for a cost of around $7,000 within the Ukraine, compared to around $20,000 when produced in the US. 

Esper presently produces the hand on a ‘zero profit’ basis within the Ukrainian market; however this stark difference in pricing may pave the way for a reduction in costings across the wider market. Factors such as economies of scale and shared innovation will likely create greater competition in the market and, therefore, could drive down the cost of prosthetics in the longer term across the industry.

The innovation emerging from Ukraine’s prosthetics sector, where advanced bionic limbs are being produced at a fraction of traditional costs, raises important questions for the market. For legal and insurance professionals working in this area, this is a topic to watch.