Saving on Surgery by Going Abroad

Cost of Medical Services Domestic or International

Regardless of whether a prospective patient decides to receive domestic surgery or travel abroad, what's most important is the quality of care and at what cost. If a patient find an accredited hospital in the U.S. and also abroad, then it might actually come down to cost and also the track record of the specialists performing the procedure. What if a surgeon in the U.S. will perform your hip resurfacing and has only performed 50 procedures, but the specialist in India has performed 3,000? who is more qualified then? For assistance with coordinating your medical travel visit http://www.medpathgroup.com

This all makes perfect sense, right. You take a medically fragile person, put him on a "big ole jet airliner", fly him literally to the other side of the world so someone skilled with instruments can do six hours of manual work on his insides without killing him with infection.

Imagine you're the proverbial man from Mars looking at this from afar (or, for that matter, God, looking down on this from afar). Have earthlings gone nuts, or what?

But there are "financial realities" you say.

Yes, and there are "real realities" I say.

Corporations are standing in the way of people OR it should be cheaper and safer to do these surgeries in America.

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Insurance for Medical Tourism

While the costs are definitely cheaper abroad, the quality of doctors and hospitals need checking, thus the need for medical tourism companies. The insurance for such services though is hard to come by. I have come across an interesting company that has assisted many Americans with liver, hip, knee surgeries - www.worldmedassist.com. They have been selected by a major insurance company to deliver logistics for employees of businesses that sign up for "stop loss" insurance.

This is new - Swiss Re's Commercial Insurance announced today they now recognize medical travel coverage as part of their existing stop loss offering. Employer stop loss is available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, through Westport Insurance Corp., a member of the Swiss Re Group, which underwrites the company's stop loss products. Coverage is coordinated with the employer's primary policy and with the patient's primary physician in the U.S. Swiss Re has selected WorldMed Assist (http://www.worldmedassist.com) as the third-party medical logistics provider to manage its medical travel option. Selected medical facilities are pre-selected to meet the criteria of the Joint Commission International (JCI) and/or an equivalent accreditation.

Dr. Quiroz

I am also a patient of Dr. Quiroz at Cosmed clinic in Tijuana. He and his staff were great and very attentive to my needs and concerns. I had an arm lift on May 28, 2008 and am still in recovery. Dr. Quiroz has checked on me and talked to me about proper care for my healing wounds. He went above and beyond to make sure that I was happy with my results. I know that I will be back at Cosmed in the near future to have more plastic surgery done. I still want to have a tummy tuck and breast implants. Cosmed gave me a great procedure at a fraction of the cost of the U.S.A. It was another step in my new journey in life. I would recommend Dr. Quiroz to anyone considering having plastic surgery. It was one of the best decisions I could have ever made.

Great experience & saved $$ in Tijuana, Mexico

Medical tourism saved me not only thousands of dollars but my life as well when I went to CosMed Clinic in Tijuana, Mexico where I had plastic surgery after extreme weight loss, and I couldn't be happier with the excellent results and absolutely superb care I received from Drs. Alejandro Quiroz (chief surgeon) and Carlos Gonzalez (bariatric surgeon). Being in my early 60's, I'm not the average type of plastic surgery patient.

I did as Dr. Quiroz emphasized on his website (www.cosmedclinic.com) and researched everything I could find out about the procedures and the surgeons, did my homework, and thereby knew exactly what to expect when I got there. First I looked up places in the U.S., but all were prohibitively expensive for what I needed. Then I found his website on obesityhelp.com and checked it out and also all the patients who reviewed him and their experiences, and from the experience of personal family members who had surgery done in Mexico. After several phone calls with him and his staff, I was satisfied with what I learned, and began planning the trip to Mexico.

Both doctors are extremely well-educated, and Dr. Quiroz has trained and practiced in the U.S. (California, Washington, and Florida). Both of them speak excellent English, as does nearly all the staff at CosMed.

Dr. Quiroz did an excellent job, and Dr. Carlos Gonzalez, the clinic's bariatric surgeon, corrected a minor problem I had with my Lap-Band port, which had been done in the U.S.

They included my husband (who is an LPN) in my after-care, and he was satisfied in seeing that the facility was well-equipped, as good as and in some ways better than the hospital he works in.

Overall, my care was superior to what I often get in the U.S., because I was treated as though I were the only patient to be seen, and they took their time with me, and made sure all my questions and concerns were addressed. The staff even went so far as to help arrange transportation and hotel accomodations from San Diego Airport to Tijuana, and ensured that we were in a safe area, and I couldn't have been more pleased.

After I returned home they were always available to answer any questions I had through phone calls and e-mail.

I would thoroughly recommend CosMed Clinic for anyone considering plastic surgery outside the U.S., but no matter where you go, learn everything you can about the education, credentials, experience, and performance of your prospective surgeon and the quality of their facilities and staff. Any future procedures I might need or want, I will consider CosMed first, or anyone they recommend.

Medical Tourism is the answer for many

It is the fact that those of us in the medical tourist industry are much more aware of the alternatives offered and the solution this offers to many medical problems. All opinions are subjective. The US "medical establishment" (AMA, insurance companies, pharmaceutical companies, and malpractice lawyers) dominates many of the "discussions" on anything having to do with medical outsourcing. These companies are, I would venture to say, undoubtedly biased.

Let me say that I put my $$ (actually Thai Baht) where my mouth is. I was dropped without reason by my insurance company more than ten years ago after paying for years and never making a claim. I outsourced my own personal medical care. First, simply getting preventive tests in Bangkok and then needing complicated shoulder surgery after an accident. The care and results were beyond exceptional. After returning to the US for follow up care and receiving horrendous treatment, it was even more obvious to me that medical tourism was an ideal alternative. Ironically, I needed emergency cardiac surgery in Bangkok last September and had a stent implanted. Once again the surgery and treatment were superior to anything I might have received here. The cost for these same services in the US would have been so prohibitive that I most likely would have not sought care and may have died. These are the facts.

I am and have been a house painter for over 30 years and know the plight of the blue collar world without medical insurance and care. Our clients at Patient Vacation have been thrilled to finally get the care and treatment that they have longed for and needed for so long. All have said they will return again to Bangkok again rather than pay for inferior and sometimes insulting service they have received in the past in the US. Yes, there are those who have excellent insurance and like the system (as it pertains to them). These folks are just as subjective as medical tourist companies. I dare you to come with us on a trip to Thailand for treatment. If you are unsatisfied with your care and feel we have misinformed you I would be shocked. Rather, I imagine you will become one of the many relieved and satisfied patients who have voted with their feet and found healthcare and peace of mind.

I would much prefer national health in the US, but guess who has a stranglehold on the senate, presidency and more. Certainly it is not the medical tourist industry that is keeping millions of Americans from healthcare. We are only offering a viable alternative and a nice vacation to boot. You decide, but don't doubt what we are saying without experiencing it. I have been on both sides and it is a no brainer. I could be broke and without medical care and sick here in the US or healthy and happy in Thailand. That is the peace of mind that all should be entitled to. We are only stating what we know and letting you decide.

Robert Cooper, Patient Vacation

www.patientvacation.com

MEDICAL TRAVEL: GETTING THERE

The fact of the matter is healthcare in America is expensive. And the cost of providing healthcare in the United States will continue to rise as the baby boom generation ages and skilled medical practitioners retire out of the system almost simultaneously.

Competent foreign hospitals and clinics, particularly in India, with well-regarded international ratings of excellence (i.e., Joint Commission International Accreditation, International Organization for Standardization Accreditation) are rising to meet the need for affordable, quality healthcare for an increasingly global community. In order for many of these countries to modernize and grow their own economies, catering to the medical needs of Americans and Europeans seeking affordable healthcare will increasingly be a device many of these nations will employ.

The reasons I focused my company, BestMed Journeys, on providing Medical Travel Concierge Service in India are simple. While the U.S. News & World Report article mentions Thailand and Singapore as further medical travel destinations, a number of countries catering to this industry are facing nursing shortages similar to what the United States is facing. India does not lack for nurses by any standard. Additionally, unlike many other countries around the globe, India offers a deep pool of English speaking doctors and nurses. India also continues to commit substantial dollars to building hospitals that are ideally suited for foreign medical travelers – and has been doing so for some time – while many other countries are only beginning to consider doing so. Finally, India’s medical care delivery system is far more affordable than some other nations attempting to embrace medical travel. India is simply ahead of other nations with regard to quality care, ample professional staffing and facilities, and affordable prices.

The most important thing to consider is that hospitals, whether they’re in New York City or Mumbai, are designed to be centers of treatment and healing; not comfort or concierge service providers. BMJ lets doctors and nurses tend to medical care while we tend to every other conceivable personal need during a client’s stay abroad. The peace of mind BMJ provides is invaluable, yet remarkably affordable and can be catered to meet nearly every budget.

Mendel Zilberberg, BestMed Journeys

www.bestmedjourneys.com

medical tourism as the only alternative for many

I have a small and unique company, Patient Vacation, in the medical tourism business. I personally have had shoulder surgery (which inspired me to start the company) and now cardiac surgery in Bangkok. The experience and results were beyond what I could have expected and certainly something that would have been impossible here in the US without paying a king's ransom and losing all of my life's savings. The key element is the superior health care offered in Thailand, not the price. From initial contact with the doctor to my return, all was done to make sure that my health and well being was satisfied.

We at Patient Vacation recently took 6 patients to Thailand and all were blown away by the service and care they received. All will be returning to Bangkok in the future for any and all medical and dental and cosmetic needs. No matter how well we prepared them for their travels, all were pleasantly surprised at how much the services they received exceeded all their previous experiences here in the US. The better term for all this should be "outsourcing your personal medical needs", but it is not as short nor catchy as "medical tourism".

For many, it is the only way to health care and well being. Talk to us.

www.patientvacation.com

Cost of medial service in US is definitely out of control

It's getting less and less affordable for working America.

Hospitals can rip you off by charging $100 for a pacj of Tylenol,a bd you are defenceless!

All of of those politicians have been saying "we need to do something with it", but nobody really cares!

If the Goverment regulate finance market and now going to regulate housing market by socializing it, why don't it try to control just a little bit medial service cost?

Is it so hard to set up a limit for cost of major medical procedures and drugs?

Is it so hard, Mr. President?

Why wait until you become a President. Senators Clinton andObama, to do something with skyrocketing medical cost?

If you are so-s concern about medical system, do something NOW! Try to push a bill that limit medical cost NOW!

Why basic X-ray costs now 30% more than 5 years ago?

Why drugs cost 20-40% less in Canada and Europe even now when USD is tumbling?

I'm not even talking about another big problem: medical service cost makes American companies less competitive! Look at GM and Ford: the core of their current problem is not only OPEK-friendly SUVs that they produce. The skyrocketing cost of medical service is killing them!

It seems to me sometimes that the entire country is a hostage of our medical system that keeps all of us under its thumb!