At our hospital, we do not recommend that people travel only because of the price. In fact, the reasons that people engage in medical care abroad are varied:

1. High quality of care
2. Almost no waiting times
3. Significantly less expensive procedures
4. Coordination with vacation/trip

In fact, most of our patients choose us because they do not want to compromise on medical care quality – you can search on “bumrungrad” and see people’s comments. In Thailand, there are many, many hospitals less expensive than us – and for a medical traveler, these are exactly the kind of places which don’t put a focus on quality.

From a pricing perspective, there are reasons why American would travel, even with insurance:

• A round trip flight to Thailand costs about $1,000 from the US. Meals and accommodations can add $100-300/day.
• A standard hip replacement in the US costs about $60,000; even with insurance the deductible and/or co-pay can cost a patient over $20,000.
• The same hip replacement in Thailand totals about $15,000, including doctors’ fees and hospital stay.
• Thousands of Americans come to Thailand each year for medical treatment because the cost savings more than pays for the extra travel, room and board. It makes a lot of sense for uninsured patients, but it sometimes even makes sense for those insured whose policies require a high co-pay or deductible.

We are not the only hospital in Asia with this level of quality – but we are a good example of why people do indeed travel for their medical procedures.

This news story just broke this morning. It’s noteworthy not just because the former Miss Argentina died after plastic surgery in her home country but also because how popular plastic surgery has become there.

From the article:

“In recent years, Argentina has become an international destination for plastic surgery. The costs of such procedures there are much lower than in other countries.

Estimates say that 1 in 30 Argentines has gone under the knife, making surgeons here some of the most experienced on the globe.

Medical tourism has seen a huge jump over the past decade, and is projected to be a $100 billion global industry by 2010, according to the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.”

I have a rare eye condition that has no FDA approved treatment. If push comes to shove, at worst, I could need a cornea transplant. For this problem, I was referred to a top doctor in the field in this country — that alone necessitated an 1800 mile flight. Said doctor has a connection in Germany who had developed a procedure that has gotten appropriate recognition. First thing said doctor said to me was to visit his buddy in Germany, which I did in a hurry. Follow ups could be done back in the US if necessary.

My condition is also treated with specialized contact lenses. The best people I have found (and I’ve seen four contact lens fitters) are associated with this doctor. No matter where I live in this country, when I need lenses, I fly to Atlanta… when I first got my lenses, I think I made the LA-Atlanta trek once or twice a month for six months.

Truth be told, the only difference between flying to Atlanta and flying to Germany was a longer flight and a passport.

And btw, for those with an FSA account, plane fare to see the doc is an allowed expense.

John DeFlumeri Jr