Medical Tourism Is Big Business But Still an Emerging Market
Photo Credit: Medical tourism is a nearly $60 billion global industry. Pictured is a promotional image of a "patient" at Bumrungrad International Hospital in Bangkok. Bumrungrad International Hospital
Skift Take
As more tourists go abroad for medical treatments there's still disconnect in the travel industry with how to accommodate travelers' times getting treatment and the rest of their in-destination experiences.
With perpetually rising healthcare costs in countries like the U.S. or poor quality hospitals and doctors in other regions, medical tourism is thriving but many travel brands remain uncertain with how to address and market medical travel.
That’s the view of Josef Woodman, the CEO of Patients Beyond Borders, an organization that connects travelers to accredited hospitals, doctors, and specialists around the world. Woodman feels that medical tourism — which Patients Beyond Borders defines as crossing borders for cost or access to quality surgery or other diagnosed treatment — “isn’t sexy to talk about” because most medical tourism involves routine visits to dentists or primary care physicians rather than life-saving surgeries, for example.
Woodman estimates the global medical tourism market ranges from $40 to $60 billion with 12 to 14 million travelers taking medical trips each year for things such as dental cleanings, cancer treatment and reproductive health. “The m
