Here in Texas, stories of folk going across the border for medical care and prescription drugs is very old news. The savings has always been striking, and while there have been occasional horror stories of bad drugs or marred nose jobs, the bad reports have been few and far between.
Now, it appears that the idea of going overseas for medical care is a growing national trend, fueled by rising health care costs and an escalating population that is uninsured. The trend already has a name: "medical tourism."
PlanetHospital.Com is one of the services filling this market niche. Others are WorldMedAssist.com , MedRetreat.Com and MedJourneys.Com.
Not only are your medical needs coordinated to the appropriate surgeon or specialist, the companies also provide comforts like a concierge service, an English-speaking guide, and all act as travel agent. "All you have to do is show up," PlanetHospital assures.
Furthermore, the health care itself is high quality. You can find health care providers overseas that are U.S. board certified, and many facilities that are affiliated with prestigious American institutions. WorldMedAssist provides the Anadolu Medical Center as an example; it is a facility in Istanbul, Turkey, that is affiliated with the elite Johns Hopkins.
The savings are huge. Angioplasty costs $11,000 overseas; it is $36,000 here. The difference: $25,000. Carpal tunnel surgery is $9000 overseas and $22,000 here. Savings: $13,000.00.
For an online listing of medical tourism sites, check out OpenDirectory. For more information, read an University of Delaware article on the topic, as well as the ever-expanding Wikipedia entry.
