• 18
  Dec
  2009

• What is medical tourism all about? - Part 1

  
  Filed Under: Blogging

There was a time when tourism meant either pleasure or business; though business included a bit of pleasure too. Times change. There is another form these days: medical tourism. So what's it all about? And how is it different from touring medical insurance?

Medical tourism, as the name suggests, is a travel plan undertaken specifically for the purpose of undergoing some form of medical treatment in a foreign country. The reason for opting to have an operation performed abroad could be either because one's native country doesn't have the facilities for such health care or because it is way too costly.

In India or Mexico, similar or better medical treatment can be obtained for around one-third of the price as compared to the US. Travel tickets, extended stay in a hospital for the patient and a companion, and the medical expenses themselves all added together often come to less than half the cost in the USA.

People who either do not have domestic health insurance or for whom the insurer has denied a medical claim often get treated outside for costly medical procedures like knee replacement surgery, cardiac by-pass surgery, etc. In an upcoming post we will see what precautions one should take before and after taking the decision to make a medical tour.

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