T. Rowe Price Health Sciences Fund
Figures last verified October 31, 2026
Active healthcare sector investing across pharma, biotech, devices, and services.
If there's a sector where active management has a fighting case, healthcare is it: binary FDA outcomes, scientific complexity that genuinely rewards expertise, and T. Rowe's health team has a long record of navigating it better than the sector index more often than chance would suggest. PRHSX has been one of the better sector funds in existence over multi-decade windows.
The site-house-view caveat still applies twice over. First, sector funds are concentration by definition — your total-market fund already holds healthcare at ~13% weight, so this is a doubling-down, not a diversifier. Second, sector enthusiasm is procyclical: money floods into healthcare funds after great runs and leaves after droughts, and the gap between fund returns and investor returns in sector funds is among the widest measured. A small, permanent, never-traded slice is the only version of this fund that tends to work as well as its chart.
Investors who insist on a healthcare bet and want specialist management.
PRHSX alternatives & comparable funds
If you’re weighing PRHSX against the field, these are the funds most investors line it up against — same job, different provider, slightly different terms.
| Fund | Family | Expense Ratio | Minimum |
|---|---|---|---|
| PRHSX — T. Rowe Price Health Sciences Fund | T. Rowe Price | 0.83% | $2,500 |
| VTSAX — Vanguard Total Stock Marke… | Vanguard | 0.04% | $3,000 |
| FXAIX — Fidelity 500 Index Fund | Fidelity | 0.015% | $0 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the expense ratio of PRHSX?
PRHSX (T. Rowe Price Health Sciences Fund) has an expense ratio of 0.83%, which works out to roughly $83 per year for every $10,000 invested. That is high relative to index alternatives, and it compounds against you every year, so the fund needs to outperform just to break even versus a cheaper option.
What is the minimum investment for PRHSX?
PRHSX requires a minimum initial investment of $2,500.
What does PRHSX invest in?
Active healthcare sector investing across pharma, biotech, devices, and services. It falls in the sector category and is an actively managed fund.
What are good alternatives to PRHSX?
The funds most often compared with PRHSX are VTSAX, FXAIX — broadly similar exposure from different providers, with small differences in fee, minimum, and portability that usually come down to which brokerage holds your account.
Expense ratio and minimum for PRHSX drawn from T. Rowe Price fund documentation; last verified October 31, 2026. Figures change — confirm against the official prospectus before investing. This review is editorial opinion, not investment advice.