Medical tourism: India's new tool to cause heartburn in US
Sujata Dutta Sachdeva
[ Sunday, December 25, 2005 01:05:37 amTIMES NEWS NETWORK ]


Outsourcing is not the only reason why Americans are unhappy with India. Medical tourism seems to be giving them a heartburn too.

And in order to stem this outflow, American hospitals are going in for aggressive marketing strategies and making patients aware about safety and insurance issues.

Anything to save their turf. Richard Merli, managing editor, Health Care Insider, KPMG, recently wrote in his weekly health analysis: "American hospitals may dismiss those patients as low or middle-income consumers who lack health insurance and might not get the procedure done in the US.

But industry observers say that the exotic locales and prospect of a vacation is attracting many wealthy patients to have elective surgeries done abroad." Last year alone, around 1.5 lakh medical tourists visited India

For more details visit: Medical tourism: India's new tool to cause heartburn in US

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Company Specializes in Medical Tourism

By Tisha Powell (12/19/05 -- RALEIGH) -

An estimated 46 million Americans have no health insurance and according to a recent study, high medical bills contribute to almost 750,000 bankruptcies a year.

These startling statistics have many Americans searching for medical care in other countries. One local business is putting American patients in touch with foreign doctors. More than a year ago, Ann Lombardi's doctor told her she needed cataract surgery. The Raleigh woman was shocked by what he said it would cost.

"I went to other doctors around the Atlanta area and was quoted $7,000," she said.

It was a price Lombardi couldn't afford to pay, even with health insurance. So she called a friend in Germany who arranged for her to have the surgery there for only $1,200.

"It was the most positive medical experience of my life," she said.

Now Lombardi and her friend Tim Vicknair are running "European Medical Tourist" or "EMT." It's a service that helps Americans arrange medical treatment in Europe.

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ABC11TV




India gears up for medical tourism


The government has set a target to rope in 1 million medical tourists by 2010. This could be quite an tough job as only 10,000-11,000 come in at present, say government officials.

The government hopes this would rake in at least Rs 5,000 crore in foreign exchange, says Minister of State for Tourism Renuka Chowdhury.

“In collaboration with the medical industry, price bending of hospitals has been completed for uniform prices for a particular treatment. Accreditation of hospitals and maintaining required international standards for treatment are now completed in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry and the medical industry,” said Chowdhury at a meeting of the Consultative Committee on Tourism here today.

For more details:

Business Standard

Now, city as medical tourism destination
Thursday, December 15, 2005 02:41:43 am TIMES NEWS NETWORK


To bring Chandigarh on the world tourism map, the UT administration has decided to promote it as a destination for medical tourism.
>>>Just when you thought India was sleeping on the opportunity of attracting international medical tourists. Another city within India announces it aims to become a medical tourism destination within India
To read the complete article visit:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1332906.cms

Is medical tourism ethical?

Alot of people believe medical tourism is akin to jumping the queue. Most medical tourists come from developed countries like USA, Canada, UK and visit countries like Cuba, India, Singapore, Philippines etc. There seems to be a raging debate about whether a country like India can afford to take on more medical tourists and would this result in neglecting the poorer section of its population looking for healthcare.

Some forecasts say medical tourism in India will become a $2.3bn business for India by 2012. We all know the importance of Information technology in driving the Indian economy. But medical tourism is touted as the next force that will handsomely contribute to the country's growth. Most people in North America/Europe or for that matter anywhere in the world are no strangers to Indian medical professionals. Some Indian doctors are even categorised as the best in their area of speciality(even by their peers). This is what in effect gives India the edge as medical tourists are comfortable with the quality of training Indian doctors possess. Infrastructure however is something that remains a sore point for many. The Government of India or rather the health ministry has to take proactive steps to ensure that India can communicate it meets or supercedes benchmarks set for blood banks, surgical equipment etc.

But what goes up has to come down. Just when the medical tourism industry in India seems to be booming it is surrounded by controversy. To gain some insight into this controversy read this screaming headline.
Controversy rages in India over medical tourism

By Amelia Gentleman International Herald Tribune

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2005

For more details on medical tourism in USA, Canada, UK, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines visit:

Medical Tourism

What is medical tourism?

Medical tourism as a concept has been gaining momentum in the recent past. Medical tourism can be best explained as a health holiday one undertakes to an international destination. More and more people from developed nations are begining to explore the possibility of getting their ailments treated at a foreign location. The selling point is low cost of treatment without having to compromise on quality of equipment or medical professionals. Medical tourism covers a gamut of services right from dental implants, cosmetic surgery to more life saving operations like cardiac surgery and bone marrow transplants.

We are the world's premier site on medical tourism. We provide information on medical professionals/institutions that operate medical tourism services in countries such as US, Canada, UK. India, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore among many more. Visit us today to gain an insight into the world of medical tourism.
Medical Tourism