Medical Tourism: Global Competition in Health Care
Table of Contents
- Executive Summary
- Introduction
- The Emerging Market for Medical Tourism
- How Patients Obtain Treatment Abroad
- Why Treatment Abroad Costs Less
- Ensuring Quality for Medical Tourists
- How Globalization Is Changing the U.S. Health Care System
- Obstacles to Health Care Globalization
- What Public Policy Changes Are Needed?
- Conclusion
- Notes
- About the Author
Introduction
Global competition is emerging in the health care industry. Wealthy patients from developing countries have long traveled to developed countries for high quality medical care. Now, growing numbers of patients from developed countries are traveling for medical reasons to regions once characterized as “third world.” Many of these “medical tourists” are not wealthy, but are seeking high quality medical care at affordable prices. To meet the demand, entrepreneurs are building technologically advanced facilities outside the United States, using foreign and domestic capital. They are hiring physicians, technicians and nurses trained to American and European standards, and where qualified personnel are not available locally, they are recruiting expatriates.
