PVC – an essential material for 21st-century healthcare

For over 70 years, PVC medical devices have allowed patients and healthcare professionals to access an ever-widening range of safe medical applications for screening, diagnosis, treatment and care. Vinyl (another word for PVC) offers excellent durability, chemical resistance, low maintenance costs and affordability, which have made the plastic material a top choice when it comes to flooring, wall covering and other key elements of hygienic healthcare facilities.


Why European policymakers shouldn’t listen to NGOs in PVC matters

Things have changed since the late 1990s when Greenpeace managed to move the European PVC industry in the right direction based on scientifically sound arguments. Today’s NGOs lack scientific rigour in PVC matters and European policymakers should therefore read PVC critique from NGOs with strong reservations.

News


Where is PVC used in healthcare?

 

Sign up for our news


 

 

About us

PVCMed Alliance is The European Council of Vinyl Manufacturers'​ value chain platform to raise awareness and promote informed decisions about the use of PVC in healthcare. The Alliance was established in 2012.

 

Our vision

The vision that informs the PVCMed Alliance’s work is of a healthcare environment that best benefits patients and healthcare professionals. Such an environment offers the finest PVC-based products and applications with the required properties and excellence needed to provide top quality health care while being environmentally sustainable.

 
NEW MARKET STUDY

Recyclable PVC to remain the most used plastic for medical devices


Almost 30% of the plastics-based medical devices are manufactured in PVC, which makes the material the most used polymer for bags, tubing, masks and other disposable medical devices. Due to the material's unique properties, this share is expected to remain the same until at least 2027.

Videos

Have you ever wondered why there's so much plastics in hospitals? Watch this short video to learn more about the importance of plastics, especially PVC, in modern healthcare.


When plastics revolutionised healthcare

Did you know that PVC-based medical devices have been used safely for over 60 years?

Today, plastics is the primary choice for disposable medical devices, allowing patients and healthcare professionals to benefit from the material’s excellent technical properties on a daily basis. But in fact, it is only quite recently that plastics have replaced medical devices made of metal, glass and ceramics.