Prices drive sick people to other countries
A new type of business has sprung up as uninsured Americans desperately try to find ways to afford the medical care they need. Planet Hospital and other firms like it aid people with medical travel planning.
They are like travel agents, but the purpose of the trip is to get a specific medical procedure at the best price. In another country.
Plight of the uninsured
Sandra Giustina is a good example of how this can help people in need of medical care. She needed surgery for an atrial fibrillation. She lives in Las Vegas, and the going rate for the procedure at U.S. hospitals was about $175,000. She knew she couldn’t come up with that kind of money and would never be able to pay off a personal loan in that amount.
She started looking into how much the procedure would cost in other countries. She was able to get the surgery she needed for less than $10,000, including travel costs, in India.
A growing trend
Experts say 6 million Americans will leave the country for the purpose of medical procedures next year.
“Medical care in countries such as India, Thailand and Singapore can cost as little as 10 percent of the cost of comparable care in the United States,” according to a 2008 Deloitte study.
Medical travel agents
About 200 businesses similar to Planet Hospital have sprouted in the U.S. Medical travel agents book travel plans, schedule phone interviews with surgeons and a company representative meets with the patient in the airport of the destination country.
“We find the best possible surgeons and deliver their service to patients safely, affordably and immediately,” said Rudy Rupak, president of Planet Hospital. “No one should have to choose between an operation to save their life or going bankrupt.”
Planet Hospital branches out
Planet Hospital works with clients worldwide. Some of their customers are people in Africa or South Asia who don’t have access to medical care. Patients from Canada and Europe travel because they are tired of waiting for treatment.
The newest branch of medical tourism is what is known as domestic medical tourism. In the context of USA, it means patients traveling to another US state/city for care that’s more affordable than in their own state/city. Surprisingly, many savvy recession-hit US hospitals are practicing this today. Learn more about it at: https://www.healthbase.com/hb/cm/domestic-medical-tourism.html
I don’t see how anyone could not see this coming. It’s already been happening for awhile, and unless there’s some way to bring down the cost of procedures domestically we’re going to see more and more of it. Why pay the local scalpel jockey $50,000 when you pay someone who is just as skilled $5,000 somewhere else?
Sound like a sweet deal to me. The amount it’ll cost you to get some medical help these days is absolutely ridiculous. This is definitely one of best ideas I’ve heard in a while.