NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, June 27, 2013

Mexico’s beaches are supposed to be beautiful so maybe it’s not hard to understand why people would flock there for surgery and make it the No. 2 medical tourism hot spot. A pair of reports reveal that although the U.S. is one of the top three destinations for medical tourism, it could also learn from innovation in other countries such as India.

Medical tourism is booming. It’s a $40 billion global industry, according to data from Patients Beyond Borders cited in a Bloomberg story.

About 800,000 international patients came to the U.S. for procedures last year, according to the report, beaten out of the top spot for medical tourism by Mexico and Thailand. Mexico in particular attracts nationals from across the border as well as those who want to pay a little less for dental and plastic surgery.

On the other hand, the U.S. has an estimated 750,000 medical tourists of its own leaving its borders in search of cheaper medical care. So maybe healthcare providers have something to learn from companies within and outside its borders. Cue the Innovative Partnership for Healthcare Delivery, based at Duke University — founded by the World Economic Forum, Duke University and McKinsey & Co. in 2011 and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation grant recipient.