In a recent article (8 April) the Voice of America has again highlighted the need for many Americans to seek medical treatment abroad because of the high cost at home.
In the article, Jan Sluizer makes the point that a greater number of Americans will have access to more affordable health insurance with the passage of the Health Care Reform Bill. However that has yet to be translated into lower healthcare costs. Consequently many US citizens are now seeking medical treatment overseas.
Medical Tourism
In July 2009, as part of a campaign to persuade more Americans to become medical tourists, Dr Fawzi Al Hammouri, the head of Jordan’s Private Hospitals Association (PHA), listed the benefits of going to Jordan for medical treatment. He said, “The hospitals are offering package deals, including air travel. All this, inclusive, is less than 25% of what you have to pay in the US.” As part of the medical package Jordan also offers a spectacular tourist experience with many unique and historic destinations on the itinerary.
Medical Treatment Abroad
Paul Keckley, Executive Director of the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions in Washington said that, “About 600,000 Americans, roughly 25% of medical tourists will travel abroad for surgery this year [2009]. Medical tourism was an industry estimated to be worth around $4 billion.
The revenue from people seeking affordable medical treatment abroad is one of the Jordan’s biggest foreign currency earners. A study carried out by PHA said that 220,00 medical tourists from 48 countries went to Jordan, generating around $1billion annually.
Jordan is listed by the World Bank as number one destination in the Arab world and fifth in the world as a medical tourism destination. The country has always been a magnate for Middle East Arabs seeking surgery abroad but new markets including the US have opened and are growing quickly.
Dr Fawzi Al Hammouri outlined what Jordan had to offer in terms of medical facilities for US citizens considering the country as a destination for overseas surgery. He listed a number of areas that that PHA specialized in. They included:
- Organ transplant
- Plastic surgery
- Cardiology
Hammouri also expected that stem cell transplants would soon be added to the list of treatments available.
Low Cost Medical Treatment Abroad
Jordan’s Private Hospital Association offers those seeking low cost medical treatment abroad some world-class facilities. Many of their top doctors have been trained in the US or have associations with some of the best-known US hospitals. American patients will have no problem with the language barrier, as many doctors speak perfect English bi-lingual translators are also available on request at all hospitals.
There are sixty private healthcare institutions with 5,000 available beds in Jordan; five are accredited by US based Joint Commission International:
- Al – Essra Hospital
- Jordan Hospital and Medical Center
- Jordan University Hospital
- King Abdullah University Hospital
- King Hussein Cancer Center
Surgery Overseas for Americans
In an interview with Meinfo.com, Hashem Irshaid International Medical Tourism Marketing and Quality Consultant at the Jordan Hospital and Medical Center gave this example of cost saving for Americans seeking surgery overseas:
“Open heart surgery in the states costs $140,000-$160,000 but just $16,000 at Jordan Hospital.”
This article was written using journalistic research and is not intended to offer medical advice.
Sources:
Sluizer J, High Costs Drive Americans Overseas for Medical Help, Voice of America, 6 April 2010
Private Hospitals Association [Jordan} website accessed 26 May 2010
Meinfo.com, Jordan pushes medical tourism industry, December 2009
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