Medical Tourism - Going Off-Shore for Less Expensive but Quality Procedures
By Shane Flait, © 2009

With the cost of U.S. healthcare increasing, finding alternatives that lower costs come into play. If you require a hospital procedure that’s too expensive for you, consider going off-shore. There you can find quality care at significantly reduced prices.

This article introduces you to taking the off-shore alternative called Medical Tourism. I explain what it means and who’s taking advantage of it.

Medical Tourism is a term associated with finding quality medical help at much lower cost outside the U.S. Taking such an alternative is especially important for those who lack insurance coverage because they

·         Have pre-existing conditions

·         Seek elective surgery not covered, or

·         Are not eligible for Medicare

A Deloitte Center for Health Solutions study showed that as many as 750,000 Americans went overseas for medical procedures in 2007. They estimated 1.5 million patients would travel abroad for services in 2008. Lastly they predicted that number of people going off shore for medical care will increase to 6 million by 2010.

And it’s not just individuals that are driving this trend. Both insurers and employers are also using Medical Tourism as a lower cost alternative. South Carolina’s Blue Cross and Blue Shield has started using this off-shore alternative. Employers in other parts of the country are showing growing curiosity in it, too, to lower health costs.

Off-shore Hospitals

The Joint Commission International (JCI), a global arm of the group that inspects and grades hospitals throughout America, has more than 150 accredited hospitals off-shore. Many of these are typical off-shore hospitals participating in the medical tourism trend.

Most of the physicians that patients have available to them are trained in the U.S., Canada, or the United Kingdom. So, their competence will be comparable to that in most American hospitals.

In fact, the quality in these international destination hospitals is better than the average U.S. facility because they're among the best in their respective countries. As an example, the mortality rate in U.S. hospitals is about 2.34 per 1,000. Compare that to only 0.8 per 1,000 for overseas JCI-accredited institutions. That should relieve you of ‘safety’ issues.

There are companies that help you find off-shore hospitals for the procedure you want.  Cost savings for off-shore surgical procedures pays for using them. As an example, a typical cost for knee-replacement surgery in the U.S. is around $50,000. But in India, it’s about $7,000. You can even find out who your off-shore surgeon will be, see his background, and talk to him.

Off-shore hospitals welcome American patients. In fact, some hospitals in Bangkok and India offer concierge services for them. See figure for off-shore locations.

Shane Flait is a writer and educator. Get more at www.EasyRetirementKnowHow.com