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Sep 29, 2008
In January, the U.S. supermarket chain Hannaford Bros. Co. began offering its employees hip and knee replacements at a hospital in Singapore. Such "medical tourism" is attractive because it offers an upfront price, a package price and a low price. A hip replacement, for example, costs $9,000 in Singapore compared with $43,000 in the United States.
Less well known is reverse medical tourism, where U.S. hospitals offer upfront, package prices to foreigners who come to this country for medical care. Hospitals who compete in this market often offer foreigners prices and packages they will not offer to American patients!
Now, however, a new phenomenon is emerging: medical tourism within U.S. borders. Turns out, you too can have price transparency – if you're willing to travel.
For example, soon after Hannaford, which is headquartered in Scarborough, Maine, negotiated its deal in Singapore, several U.S. hospitals offered to match the Singapore prices. Currently, the company has a contract with a Boston hospital for hip, knee and spine surgery, according to a Victoria Knight article in the Wall Street Journal.
Moreover, a new company, Healthplace America, has been formed to facilitate within-country medical tourism. It offers price and quality transparency for a network of 15 hospitals. Savings are typically 30% to 50% off of what patients and their insurer/employer would otherwise pay.
Note: all this is happening without any HHS coaxing, cajoling, prodding, pleading, moaning, groaning or begging. Just markets at work.
7 Responses to “Medical Tourism Reversing Course”
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Helium
September 29th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
So hospitals are able to do what they have always told us that they cannot do — give patients a package price.
I appears all that is needed is a little competition.
June 1st, 2009 at 10:35 am
[...] National Center for Policy Analysis has written a good bit about medical tourism, the U.S. hospital reaction to medical tourism, and those shopping for health care. Here is the latest on medical tourism from Forbes. [...]
July 6th, 2009 at 7:34 am
[...] The National Center for Policy Analysis has written a good bit about medical tourism, the U.S. hospital reaction to medical tourism, and those shopping for health care. Here is the latest on medical tourism from Forbes. Still, I [...]
September 14th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Mr Goodman,
My research into medical tourism thus far has only highlighted hospitals with no attention or thought given to the small sole practionter who, as in this case, happens to be a Dentist. Any ideas how to go about attracting potential dental patients without an advertising budget or staff that could compete with hospitals for business?
January 15th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
[...] interesting example of a local company that secured a deal overseas; quoted from John Goodman’s NCPA blog: “The U.S. supermarket chain Hannaford Bros. Co. began offering its employees hip and knee [...]
February 5th, 2010 at 12:25 am
After the hospital matches the Singapore price for that one group, do they jack up their prices for everyone else to make up for it? That would seem par for the course.
June 27th, 2010 at 9:25 pm
indonesia is one of place tourism in the world. good tourism