For most people who are in need of medical care, traveling is out of the question. They wouldn’t prefer to delay medical treatments for last minute ticket bookings and travel plans. But you see this is not your weekend getaway trip up hills or a flight to Barbados. The last thing on your mind would be to travel but do you know that a growing number of North American and Canadian medical tourists frequently set out for Mexico, India, and Thailand for a lot of medical procedures including dental work, heart and limb surgeries and even breast implants? This is because of the rising health care costs in the country. This has pushed a lot of people to seek numerous major medical treatments elsewhere.
A fact that we can’t ignore is that major cities in developing countries have efficiently caught up to quality that is readily available in developed nations. Their hospitals and surgical facilities are world class and in some cases even surpass the quality of standards we are used to over here. Medical tourism is a growing industry worldwide and even you will be surprised to find that the most advanced and state of the art equipment and facilities are being used at these hospitals and clinics. While most of us see price as the singular factor that helps us in making this decision, this is not necessarily the case. Patients who look overseas for procuring health care are greeted by a vast number of other benefits as well. But for now let’s focus on arguably the primary reason why people opt for Medical Assisted Vacation and that is its price.
You will agree that the huge price difference between the medical service that we get here and the ones we might receive in India or Thailand for instance will remain the prime motivator for most patients. Price is the main reason why most people take this decision. They choose to go overseas for medical treatment not because the numbers or studies suggest that the price is lower.
These figures merely depict a price range that is usually on an even lower side in reality. These are normally one fourth to one tenth of the price you would pay in Canada or US. The services that occupy the one-tenth slot are too very high in quality and if you choose a medical treatment that lies somewhere in between, you are in for a pleasant surprise. Right now what major trends and studies suggest is that India is very much on the lowest priced tip of the scale. Thailand is India’s major competition and it is approximately 20% costlier. If you go to South America, the medical tourism hubs down there are 50-100% more expensive than India. But then the prices keep fluctuating and it all depends on the choice and budget of the patient as well. So, when do you take your medical tourism flight?