By Jessica Yarbrough, Marketing & Communications Manager
Satori World Medical

More and more American consumers are seeking high-quality healthcare outside the U.S. in order to dramatically reduce their medical expenses on certain high-cost surgical procedures.  This trend, most commonly referred to as medical travel or medical tourism, has also propelled a national interest among U.S. employers seeking innovative ways to reduce their employee healthcare costs.  By including a global healthcare benefit option, employers can save 40-80% on high-cost surgical procedures.  The savings are so dramatic that the employer or financial sponsor will waive any out-of-pocket expenses for the employee receiving care.  For many Americas, medical travel is an appealing and cost-effective option to receiving care.  But what items should consumers look for when considering a medical travel company?

• Quality Assurance: While high-quality care is available at many hospitals around the world, not all medical travel programs offer the same level of quality. Therefore, it is important to be familiar with all aspects of the company’s quality assurance program. For instance, as a baseline, choose a medical travel company that only contracts with international hospitals accredited by Joint Commission International (JCI), an arm of the U.S. hospital-accrediting body, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).   JCI sets over 350 standards of excellence for international hospitals to meet that ensure the quality and safety of patient care.
• Out-of-Pocket Costs: Not every medical travel program is all-inclusive. Therefore, it is essential to understand what is included in the cost of your care.  For example, does the cost include roundtrip airfare and hotel accommodations?  What about travel costs for a companion?  Are there any out-of-pocket costs such as deductibles or co-pays that you may incur?
• Current Coverage: There are now medical travel programs available to U.S. employers, which can be easily added as a benefit option to their employees’ existing health plan.   Many programs can be added without any recurring cost or network access fee to the employer.  Ask your HR manager or benefits advisor if this is a covered benefit.  If you don’t already have a medical travel/global benefit option, ask about adding one to your company’s benefit plan design.  
• Patient Support Systems: Making the decision to receive surgery outside of the U.S. can be a challenging decision, therefore, it is important to work with a medical travel company that has a strong patient advocacy and support program in place. Specific attributes to look for include access to registered nurses who can guide you through the process in coordinating your care, facilitating your medical record transfer and scheduling your follow-up care with your U.S. physician.

How global healthcare programs provide high quality and affordable healthcare solutions

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

Soaring U.S. healthcare costs, coupled by a crippled economy, continue to put U.S. Healthcare Reform at the top of our nation’s agenda.

U.S. government economists predict that public and private health spending will hit $2.5 trillion this year, taking up a 17.6 percent share of gross domestic product. (Source: Reuters, “Obama sets up formal office for healthcare reform,” Apr. 9, 2009) That ranks the U.S. the most expensive nation in the world for healthcare.

For large multinational corporations, footing healthcare costs presents an enormous expense. General Motors, for instance, covers more than 1.1 million current and former employees, and the company says it spent roughly $5.6 billion on healthcare expenses in 2006. (Source: Associated Press, “Upfront costs complicate Obama’s health care plan,” by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, May 10, 2009) GM’s retiree health care expenses alone add up to $50 billion a year.

Meanwhile, as healthcare costs continue to rise more employers are being forced to shift a larger portion of the costs of healthcare to their employees in order to remain profitable. As a result, America’s employees have become responsible for a greater share of their own healthcare expenses (deductibles, co-pays, co-insurances, etc.)

How Can Medical Tourism Help Address America’s Healthcare Crisis?

One concept that is continuing to gain widespread appeal among the U.S. public and private sectors is medical tourism, whereby patients travel to hospitals outside the U.S. to receive quality medical care at a fraction of the cost domestically.

A number of factors are driving this movement, including the high quality of care that is available internationally, the ability to dramatically reduce a U.S. patient’s out-of-pocket expenses for typical high-cost surgical procedures, as well as the adoption and integration of global healthcare benefits into plan sponsors’ plan design.

What’s particularly interesting is just how well aligned global healthcare programs are with the key established principles of Obama’s Healthcare Reform agenda.

For example, President Obama has announced three bedrock requirements for real healthcare reform, which Satori World Medical’s business and care model specifically addresses.

·       Reduce Costs: Rising healthcare costs are crushing the budgets of governments, businesses, individuals and families and they must be brought under control. U.S. patients now have the ability to undergo high quality surgical procedures performed at International Centers of Excellence through the Satori Global Network™ and tremendously reduce their medical expenses. Additionally, the individual seeking care actually receives a portion of the savings through an employer-funded, tax-advantaged Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) which can be used to offset their future medical expenses. 

·       Guarantee Choice: Americans must have the freedom to keep whatever doctor and healthcare plan they have, or to select a new doctor or healthcare plan if they choose. Consumer choice is extremely important because employers, health plans and policy-makers recognize that unless consumers are more engaged in decisions about their health and the costs associated with those decisions, costs will continue to soar.

Satori World Medical is directly aligned with this fundamental principle because consumer choice is one of the main hallmarks of its program. The Satori Global Network™ has been specifically designed, so that it can be seamlessly integrated with any existing domestic employer-funded health plan.  It does not replace an existing health plan, but rather augments it to provide individuals with more healthcare choices.

·       Ensure Affordable Care for All: All Americans must have access to quality and affordable healthcare. That’s why global healthcare programs make so much sense. Any employer can participate in the Satori World Medical program because it can be implemented without any startup costs to the employer or payor, and with no out-of-pocket costs for the employee (including all hotel and travel for the patient and a companion).

The ability to provide all Americans with access to quality, affordable healthcare is no longer an option, it’s a necessity. While global healthcare certainly isn’t the only answer to solving our nation’s healthcare crisis, clearly global healthcare programs, such as those offered by Satori World Medical, make a lot of sense.