Psst. Hey buddy, wanna save 75% on that hip replacement? What might sound like a bad late-night movie plot is very much reality. Medical tourism is growing as patients in developed countries seek to diminish wait times, reduce costs or both.
Currently over 50 countries count medical tourism as a national industry. Places as diverse as Argentina, Jordan, Belgium, the Ukraine and Thailand. It’s estimated that 800,000 people per year leave the US for medical or dental procedures.
In countries like the UK and Canada, a long wait time for procedures encourages people to travel to other countries. In the US, cost motivates most patients. As the New York Times reported recently, a replacement hip in Belgium costs about $13,000 and the same procedure in the US can be as much as $100,000.
Top Procedure
There is conflicting data about just what is the top medical procedure, but the website PatientsBeyondBorders.com lists the following in decreasing order of popularity.
- Cosmetic surgery
- Dentistry
- Cardiovascular
- Orthopedics
- Cancer
- Reproductive
- Weight Loss
- Scans, tests, health screenings and second opinions
Gastric-bypass is increasingly common for travelers because it’s often not covered by US health insurance. Top destinations for gastric bypass include Mexico, Panama and India. Doctors perform traditional gastric bypass as well as the newer sleeve gastrectomy and lap-band surgeries.
Of the procedures performed overseas, Sermo physicians had the most resistance for this category because recovery time is lengthy, physician followup is required, and complications from surgery can be as high as 1.25%
Medical Tourism Drawbacks
Things can and do go wrong with medical tourism. Physicians inside Sermo are concerned about …
- The cleanliness of the facilities
- The expertise of the staff, both medical and support
- Follow-up care, especially if there are complications
- Language barriers both for the patients at the facilities and for the medical staff back in the U.S. responsible for follow-up care
- The lack of legal protection when opting for out-of-country procedures
The U.S. Insurance Company Supports Some Procedures
One doctor inside Sermo talked about his state sending patients overseas specifically to save money on procedures. The insurer pays all costs including travel and living arrangements both in and out of hospital and will assign pre- and follow-up care to doctors in the US including the transfer of medical records.
Health insurers save money over US pricing and still ensure pre- and post-care for their members.
What do you think? Is medical tourism something to look into as a doctor or a patient? Would you as a doctor recommend a trip overseas for to help a patient save money? If you’ve already referred patients, how was the experience overall?
If you are an M.D. or a D.O. you can continue this conversation inside Sermo.
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