Medical tourism is commonly associated with cosmetic procedures such as plastic surgery and botox injections. Medical tourism also exists for those seeking organ transplantation.The ethical concerns associated with organ transplantation and medical tourism are nicely summarized in this publication.Here is a recent article in The New York Times with a slightly different perspective on medical tourism. The focus is on the exorbitant price of orthopedic joint implants in the USA and how some Americans have gone to Europe for more affordable prosthetic joints. The price of prosthetic joints in the USA is astronomical compared to that of Western European countries. This is driven by various factors, many of which are not so righteous.
The above is not surprising. I am not a healthcare economist, yet as a practicing physician I have a firsthand perspective of the excesses that drive our spiraling healthcare costs.
We pay too much for our healthcare, as summarized here in this PBS Newshour report. Unfortunately, our outcomes are not always great.
We don't get what we pay for.