Bill of Health: Medical Tourism Goes Corporate

The medical tourism trend, which was still in its infancy when Bill of Health first examined it in 2006, has reached the mainstream. As NBR correspondent Jeff Yastine reports, hotel chains and major insurors have begun to tailor some of their services to medical tourists.



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External Links/Articles*

• American Medical Association (AMA) (PDF Document)
  The AMA is an organization that advocates for physicians. This links to the AMA's new guidelines on medical tourism, which are mentioned in Jeff Yastine's report.
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina
  As Jeff Yastine points out in his report, insuror Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina set up Companion global Healthcare to provide overseas health care options to customers.
• BridgeHealth International
  BridgeHealth International is "a full-service medical travel company." The company's CEO, Vic Lazzaro, is interviewed in Jeff Yastine's report.
• Companion Global Healthcare
  Companion Global Healthcare is a subsidiary of Blue Cross Blue Shield of South Carolina, which set the company up to offer "additional healthcare choices to patients at highly qualified international facilities."
• InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)
  IHG is a UK headquarted company that operates a number of major hotel brands, including Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn. This links to a June 5, 2008 press release issued by IHG titled, "IHG and the Medical Tourism Association Join to Facilitate Medical-Related Travel into Latin America."
• Managed Care Magazine
  Managed Care Magazine is "a guide for health plan executives and physicians on capitation and other health insurance and delivery issues." This links to an article in the March 2008 edition of the magazine. The article is titled, "Aetna and Hannaford Make a Singapore Connection." The article offers an in-depth look at the Aetna-Hannaford deal mentioned in Jeff Yastine's report.

*Clicking these external links will take you off the NBR web site on PBS.org. NBR has no affiliation with these sites.