A McKinsey
report on global medical tourism says most medical tourists are leaving home to seek more advanced and higher-quality care — often the wealthy in the developing world traveling to the U.S. and other developed countries. Just ask the
Mayo Clinic or the
Cleveland Clinic, which have catered to well-heeled international patients for decades.
In total, somewhere between 60,000 and 85,000 people a year travel to a foreign country to receive care,
the WSJ reports. Only 13% of those are people looking for cheaper prices. Another 15%, largely from Canada and the U.K., do it to circumvent the long waiting times.
The big question is whether insurers, employers and the government will begin encouraging the practice.