By Keith Mendoza, Director of Sales Satori World Medical

Experts say that consumer-driven healthcare will continue to play an important role in U.S. Healthcare Reform by helping to contain healthcare costs across the board, while giving consumers more control over their own healthcare choices and expenses.

According to a recent study of 589 large U.S. employers, conducted by Watson Wyatt and the National Business Group on Health, more U.S. employers say they will offer consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) in 2010 in order to help control employees’ healthcare costs. A CDHP is an insurance coverage option with a high deductible that is typically combined with a tax-advantaged Health Reimbursement Account (HRA), funded by the employer or Health Savings Account (HSA), funded by the employer or employee.

The study found that 51 percent of companies now offer workers a CDHP, up from 47 percent in 2008. These plans invite workers to choose from insurance coverage with a menu that usually makes the cost of medical care clear. There are currently an estimated 160 million Americans (nearly half of the population) who receive health insurance through an employer.

Another study by CIGNA revealed that more than 400,000 client employees found the ultimate cost of health coverage for both the employer and employee was typically 13 percent less for those enrolled in a CDHP than for those with a Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) or Health Maintenance Organization (HMO).

The growing adoption of CDHPs among U.S. employers, in particular, has created an extremely bright opportunity and future for the medical tourism industry. An example of medical tourism is when American employees travel to countries outside the U.S. to receive high-quality healthcare at a fraction of the cost.

Satori World Medical has created the industry’s first global healthcare program whereby U.S. employees actually participate directly in the economic benefits of medical travel. Through the Satori program, for the first time ever, employees are eligible to receive thousands through an employer-funded HRA or HSA by undergoing certain surgical procedures through any of the Joint Commission International (JCI)-accredited hospitals with the Satori Global Network™. Qualifying procedures include cardiac, orthopedic and spinal surgeries, just to name a few, that are typically cost-prohibitive within the domestic hospital system.

Additionally, there is no monthly or fixed cost to the employer or payor to integrate the Satori Global Network™ into their existing health plan design. On average, the cost savings per procedure, range anywhere from 40-80 percent through Satori’s program, including the costs for travel and hotel accommodations for the patient and a companion.

So how do medical travel programs like Satori World Medical specifically fit into CDHPs?

Well for one, they offer healthcare consumers the ultimate choice of quality care and control over their healthcare cost, which is the primary premise of CDHPs.

Medical travel programs offer tremendous cost savings, which will only further accelerate the adoption of CDHPs. Global healthcare programs are proven to dramatically reduce the cost of healthcare across the board for all participants – U.S. employers, payors, and employees.

Finally, it is important to recognize that both above cost and quality objectives are achieved through medical travel programs.  In fact, all of the hospitals in the Satori Global Network™ are JCI-accredited, staffed by doctors that are U.S./U.K. or equivalently trained and Board Certified, and offer some of the best medical care and technology available anywhere in the world.

As we continue to explore and find ways to provide more Americans with access to quality and affordable healthcare, it is very promising to see the growing mainstream demand for and success of progressive options like CDHPs and globalized healthcare.