Finance a PET/CT Scanner With a Payment That Follows the Referral Ramp

Seven-Figure Equipment, Underwritten Properly

Most banks do not know how to finance a $2M PET/CT. We do this every week, and we structure around a referral ramp instead of assuming full utilization on day one.

Step-Up Payments While Referrals Build

A new PET/CT does not fill its schedule immediately. We can start payments lighter and step them up as scan volume climbs, so the note matches the ramp rather than fighting it.

Siting, Hot Lab, and Install Considered

A PET/CT is a construction project as much as a purchase. We can fund the vault, the hot lab, and install alongside the scanner rather than leaving them for cash.

Section 179 on a Major Capital Asset

A PET/CT is significant qualifying equipment, and the first-year deduction can be large. On a seven-figure system the tax impact is a real part of the return. Confirm with your CPA.

The scanner is the headline number, but a PET/CT is a facility. New systems run roughly $1,000,000 to $2,500,000. A Siemens Biograph mCT, with time-of-flight PET and a diagnostic-grade CT, typically lands in the $1.6M to $2.3M range depending on ring configuration and CT slice count. The GE Discovery MI, built around silicon photomultiplier detectors, sits in a similar band and reaches the top of it in higher-channel configurations. Certified refurbished Biograph and Discovery units open PET to imaging centers starting around $1.2M to $1.6M.

Then the building. A PET/CT needs siting that accounts for both the CT and the PET isotopes: a shielded room, a hot lab for handling FDG and other radiopharmaceuticals, prep and uptake rooms, a chiller, and heavy three-phase power. There is a radiation physicist, a survey, and state licensure for the isotopes. Radiopharmaceutical supply logistics matter too, since FDG has a short half-life and has to arrive on schedule. We finance the scanner and can wrap much of the siting and install into the structure, so the practice is underwriting one project. A realistic all-in for a new PET/CT with siting frequently runs $1.8M to $2.7M.

PET/CT economics are driven by high per-study reimbursement against a schedule that takes time to fill. Oncologic PET/CT studies reimburse in the four figures per scan for the technical and professional components combined, and a center running even a handful of scans a day builds substantial monthly revenue once referrals mature. The growth story adds to it: PSMA imaging for prostate cancer and DOTATATE for neuroendocrine tumors have expanded the referral base well beyond traditional oncology staging, and cardiac and neuro applications round out utilization. The challenge is never per-study economics, it is the ramp, which is exactly why the payment structure matters.

On tax, a PET/CT is major Section 179-eligible equipment. Under the 2025 tax law the Section 179 cap rose to $2,500,000 with 100% bonus depreciation restored, so even a seven-figure system can often be substantially or fully expensed in the year it is placed in service. On a $1.85M scanner, a center with the income to absorb it can see a first-year deduction that materially changes the after-tax cost of ownership. Because the timing of placed-in-service and the interaction with bonus depreciation is complex at this scale, plan it with your CPA before you sign, so the deduction lands in the year you want it.

Recent PET/CT deals, structured around the referral ramp rather than a bank's assumption of full utilization:

• $1,850,000 Siemens Biograph mCT for a 9-year Dallas, Texas cancer center. Credit 762, 5.99% APR over 72 months on a step-up schedule, $150,000 down.
• $2,300,000 GE Discovery MI for a 14-year hospital-affiliated oncology group in Atlanta, Georgia. Credit 781, 5.49% APR over 84 months, $100,000 down.
• $1,420,000 certified refurbished Siemens Biograph mCT Flow for a 7-year Houston, Texas imaging center. Credit 724, 6.29% APR over 72 months, $175,000 down.
• $2,050,000 GE Discovery MI for an 18-year Orlando, Florida radiology group. Credit 774, 5.74% APR over 84 months on a step-up schedule, $200,000 down.

The Dallas structure is the template we reach for on new PET programs: lighter payments while the center built its referral base, stepping up as the schedule filled, so cash flow and the note grew together.

A seven-figure scanner is a different exercise from a $90,000 unit, and it needs a lender who has done it before. We underwrite on the full picture, center financials, time in operation, and the referral base, and we bring the file to lenders who finance nuclear imaging rather than ones who will stall on it.

Structures we use on PET/CT:

• Step-up schedules, lighter early payments rising as scan volume ramps toward capacity.
• Deferred first payment, often 90 days, to cover siting completion, licensure, and the first isotope deliveries.
• Progress or draw funding during construction of the vault and hot lab.
• $1 buyout for long-term ownership, or FMV or operating lease for centers that want to refresh detectors on a technology cycle.

We finance new and certified refurbished Siemens Biograph and GE Discovery systems and can include much of the siting and install. Because these are financials-based, we can produce an early structure so you can plan the buildout and negotiate the OEM quote from a known payment. All credit profiles are reviewed across more than 500 lenders, and we place strong and challenged credit alike.

How much does a PET/CT scanner cost?

New PET/CT systems run roughly $1,000,000 to $2,500,000. A Siemens Biograph mCT or GE Discovery MI fully configured typically lands in the $1.5M to $2.3M range, while certified refurbished units come in lower.

Can you finance a refurbished PET/CT?

Yes. Certified refurbished Siemens Biograph and GE Discovery systems fund regularly and are a common way for an imaging center to enter PET at a lower capital cost. Expect rates modestly above new equipment.

What is a step-up payment structure?

It means lower payments early, rising on a set schedule as your referral base and scan volume grow. It keeps the note affordable during the ramp instead of assuming a full schedule from month one.

Does financing include siting and the hot lab?

It can. The vault, hot lab, radiopharmaceutical prep space, chiller, and install can be included alongside the scanner, so the whole project sits on one facility note.

What credit and financials are needed?

Seven-figure deals are underwritten on the full picture: practice or center financials, time in operation, and the referral base. Strong credit earns rates from 5.49% APR. We also work with practices that have challenged credit by matching them to the right lender.

How long does a PET/CT approval take?

Because these are larger and financials-based, expect several business days to a couple of weeks depending on documentation. We can issue a soft structure early so you can plan the project and negotiate the equipment quote.