Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
'Medical Tourism' On The Rise: 1.4M Expected To Travel Outside U.S. For Health Care
The Fiscal Times: 1.4 Million Americans Will Go Abroad For Medical Care This Year. Should You?
Health care has become so expensive in the United States that a growing number of Americans (and their employers) are finding it more cost efficient to fly across the globe for certain medical procedures. The savings are so great — and the quality high enough — that a handful of American insurance companies are now encouraging the practice and covering the travel and treatment costs. Medical tourism” was valued at about $439 billion last year in a new report by Visa and Oxford Economics, which projected that it could grow 25 percent a year over the next decade. (Braverman, 8/17)