By Jessica Yarbrough, Marketing & Communications Manager of Satori World Medical

Last Friday, the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions released its 2009 Medical Tourism Report, “Update and Implications, which serves as an update to Deloitte’s medical tourism study, “Consumers in Search of Value,” issued last year.

According to Deloitte’s findings in 2009, all indications show that as the cost of healthcare continues to rise, more Americans will seek alternatives to obtaining quality and affordable medical care and fuel the demand for global healthcare.

In the report, Deloitte forecasts that barring any tempering factors such as supply constraints, increased domestic competition, or governmental policies, outbound medical tourism (the practice of receiving medical care internationally) could reach upwards of 1.6 million patients by 2012, with sustainable annual growth of 35 percent.

One key driving factor fueling the industry’s growth is the emergence of medical travel programs that are being offered as a benefit option to individuals through their health plans. More U.S. employers are looking at medical travel programs as a way to reduce their employee healthcare expense while still providing access to high-quality providers at top institutions worldwide.

In the report, Deloitte highlights the introduction of pilot programs, whereby health plans and employers are offering global healthcare programs as a built-in benefit option for covered individuals, with the hopes that such plans will be expanded on a broader scale.

Satori World Medical has created a fully integrated, high-quality global healthcare program that can be easily added to an employer’s benefit plan design at no cost to the plan sponsor. What makes this program so unique is its innovative financial sharing model, whereby for the first time, the employee receives a direct and meaningful portion of the savings of medical tourism. By receiving care at any of the Joint Commission International (JCI)-accredited hospitals in the Satori Global Network™, the employee is eligible for a deposit of thousands of dollars in an employer-funded Health Reimbursement Account (HRA). The money deposited is tax-free to the employee and can be used to fund their future medical expenses for several years.

According to Paul Keckley, the Executive Director for the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, “Medical tourism has transitioned from a cottage industry to an acceptable alternative for elective care that’s safe and cost effective if coordinated by reputable health plans and providers. “   He continues, “With health care costs increasing at six percent per year for the next decade, and medical tourism offering savings of up to 70 percent after travel expenses, we anticipate that the industry will recover from the current economic downturn and attain 35 percent annual growth in the coming years.  The concept of “value” in health care is not new.  Medical tourism represents another mechanism for value purchasers of health care services.”

Deloitte’s 2009 report is a solid indication that the demand for medical travel will continue to soar, and we’re glad to be at the forefront of delivering high-quality healthcare solutions that America’s workforce will value.

To learn more about Deloitte’s latest findings on medical tourism, you can download the complete 2009 report here.