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Stimulus package and medical care |
Stimulus package and medical care
February 11, 2009
From: Examiner.com
Will American turn to medical tourism to avoid provisions in the stimulus plan to be offered by Congress and signed by Obama shortly?
The medical care provisions in the stimulus package is creating apprehension about exactly what is in it and where it will lead. There are some concerns that it follows the recommendations of Tom Daschle, even though he withdrew his nomination to oversee the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.
Former New York lieutenant governor Betsy McCaughey, writing in Bloomberg.com on February 9, 2009, said, "One new bureaucracy, the National Coordinator of Health Information Technology, will monitor treatments to make sure your doctor is doing what the federal government deems appropriate and cost effective. The goal is to reduce costs and 'guide' your doctor's decisions."
One way Americans can avoid having their medical information tracked and making their own decisions about treatment is to become a "medical tourist" in traveling to a foreign country. Already Brazil, India, Mexico, Singapore, South Korea and Thailand, have established medical facilities that provide surgery and treatments at sometimes half the cost of that charged in the United States. That includes cost of airfare, hotel rooms and meals. Many of the facilities are manned by U.S. trained doctors and nurses.
Just as many Canadians come to the U.S. for medical treatment, those unhappy with how they will be treated as patients under provisions in the stimulus bill, Americans may also make the decision to be in control of their medical care by going outside the United States. |
