By: Jen McCormick, Esq.

On the way home to Boston from a recent international family vacation, I had the pleasure of sitting next to a young gentleman.  He was very friendly and didn’t seem to mind a wiggly toddler so we started to chat.   He told me that he would be in Boston for a month with his father (who was also on the flight), because his father needed medical treatment.  He explained that the services his father needed were not available on the island, and his father’s health insurance would cover a small part of these services via ‘reverse medical tourism.’  The gentleman implied that the family would be covering the balance.  It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that US hospitals are likely enthusiastic to offer services to affluent international patients (maybe because they might pay the hospital at a higher rate than an insurance company).  

During the flight, the gentleman also wanted to know if he could ask me a few questions about where to go in Boston.  Of course I was ready and excited to tell him all the places to visit and see in Boston, but he instead pulled out a list of medical supplies that needed to be purchased (some for the trip and some to bring home).  The gentleman explained that he had been instructed to purchase these basic supplies to avoid having insurance pay for them and/or due to some of these items being difficult to locate (or too expensive) on the island.  

On a daily basis we work to ensure employers are aware of how they can stretch their budgets while still providing comprehensive benefits to their loyal employees.  One popular way is via international medical tourism.  My chat with this gentleman on my short flight home was a reminder that medical tourism works in a variety of ways - US patients are seeking services abroad to obtain services and care at more affordable rates, while at the same time the international patients are seeking services in the US because they can afford to self pay.