For Employers

Challenge

The healthcare system in the U.S. is mostly an employer based system, but there remains an estimated over 50 million residents who are uninsured. Unfortunately, the U.S is the only industrialized country in the world that does not guarantee access to healthcare as a right to citizenship. The World Health Organization ranked the U.S 37th in this matter of healthcare in 2000. A decade later, the number of individuals who remain uninsured is growing exponentially. Furthermore, employers are moving in the direction of shifting healthcare costs onto their employees by increasing their co-pays and deductibles.

After fighting for healthcare reform in the U.S. for over two decades, the Obama administration passed the health care reform bill into law on March 23, 2010. The idea behind this new law is to make healthcare coverage available to all U.S. residents. In doing so, large employers are now required to offer healthcare coverage to their employees or face fines. These fines are $167.67 per month and per employee beginning at the 31st employee. The plans offered to employees cannot not include pre-existing condition exclusions and the waiting period should not exceed 90 days. Unfortunately, many large employers are under tremendous cost pressure and are dropping their employees’ healthcare plans altogether. It seems it is cheaper to pay the fines than to pay for healthcare coverage for their employees.

What if, however, there is a way where employers could provide their employees with healthcare coverage while reducing their costs? An alternative solution does exist. It is through Medical Tourism.

Solution

The U.S. is starting to see a growing number of employers seeking alternative healthcare solutions for their employees through Medical Tourism. Medical Tourism is a win-win situation for all parties involved. The employer pays less, insurance companies pay less, and the employee receives the desired medical treatment.

The world has changed significantly over the past decade. Healthcare is becoming more and more balanced. Many countries have the same or higher level of medical care as the U.S. In fact, countries such as Thailand, who has become a leader in international healthcare, has aggressively sought out and received international accreditation for many of their hospitals. Thailand was the first country in Asia to achieve JCI accreditation in 2002, and 15 hospitals are now accredited. India is another example. Estimates say that nearly a half a million medical tourists travelled to India last year to seek medical treatment. Most estimates claim treatment costs in India start at around a tenth of the price of comparable treatment in the U.S. or the UK.  Like Thailand, India is also aggressively seeking and acquiring international accreditation for many of their hospitals. Since English is the common language in India, it is becoming more and more attractive to western tourists.

Because of this parity, companies today see the advantages of seeking medical treatment abroad for their workers. Most importantly, companies must educate their employees about the advantages of Medical Tourism. They have to show that low cost and high quality healthcare abroad does exist and is a viable option for them and their families.

Companies are also seeking domestic Medical Tourism for their employees as well. A case in point is Lowes Companies. They implemented a partnership program with Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. Cleveland Clinic was ranked the 4th best hospital in the U.S. and the first best hospital for Heart Surgery. They are able to provide costs that are well below the national norm. Employers today need to take advantage of such opportunities.

As healthcare reform takes hold in the U.S. , companies today must be creative in seeking alternative healthcare solutions for their employees. MedCareLink can assist companies in building a viable Medical Tourism package for their employees. Call us at MedCareLink to learn how we can help. 

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