Washington Post, Wall Street Journal Examine Issue of Medical Tourism
Summaries of three developments related to medical tourism appear below.
- Complications: The Washington Post on Tuesday examined how "when things ... go badly" with medical procedures performed on U.S. residents in foreign nations, a "patient may be left facing a host of challenges: lack of access to follow-up care at home; doctors who won't get involved in corrective procedures; extra money that must be spent to undo what has been done; and a complicated legal picture if they want to try to recoup costs." The Post featured Betty Meisel, a retired health insurance agent who received cosmetic surgery at a hospital in Bangkok that "ranged from badly done to completely botched." Meisel paid $16,000 for travel arrangements and several procedures, including an eyelid tuck, a chin tuck and breast implant removal. The Post reports that Meisel had difficulty finding a U.S. surgeon to correct the errors. She was later reimbursed by the hospital, excluding the travel arrangements, after a reporter contacted the hospital regarding the errors (Redfearn, Washington Post, 7/8).
- New Zealand: The Post on Tuesday featured New-Zealand-based firm Medtral, which "aims to make New Zealand a destination of choice for some of the growing number of medical tourists" seeking medical procedures for "bargain-basement price[s]." According to Arnold Milstein, chief physician at Mercer, a knee replacement in New Zealand would cost about $22,500 -- including hotel, airfare for two and a designated registered nurse -- compared with $32,000 in the U.S. A coronary bypass surgery would cost roughly $34,000 in New Zealand, compared with $61,500 in the U.S. In addition, compared with other nations such as India and Mexico, New Zealand offers "English-speaking hospital staff and a culture that feels familiar to many Americans," according to the Post (Black Watkin, Washington Post, 7/8).
- Europeans: The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday examined how in New York, Florida and California, many surgeons are "seeing an influx of overseas patients who are taking advantage of the weak dollar to schedule cosmetic surgery, sometimes combining it with shopping and sightseeing excursions." Since 2005, the value of the U.S. dollar fallen by 24% against the euro, and 11% against the British pound. According to the Journal, many U.S. surgeons say that "economic slowdown is forcing them to work harder to find patients," and they have begun to tailor marketing to European nations. According to the Journal, the trend "marks a shift in the way medical tourism has flowed when it is cost-driven" (Rundle, Wall Street Journal, 7/8).
