Editor's Note: While not directly tied to medical travel, this recent fiercehealthpayer.com story regarding Aetna's decision to make health insurance policies available for purchase at Costco caught my eye. While I don't think one-size-fits-all, off-the-shelf medical travel packages will be quick to follow (or even a good idea), I'm certain that

Prweb.com - Save On Medical announces their new patient assistance initiative, which helps patients in low-populated areas find quality and affordable healthcare providers with comparative price-shopping features. Patients with limited physician access now have a resource to help them discover the closest providers with the best reviews and pricing. Geographic data firm,

fiercehealthpayer.com - Almost 25 percent of adults between 19 and 64 years old--or 48 million people--lacked health insurance last year, and almost 70 percent of those adults lacked health coverage for more than a year, according to a study published by the Commonwealth Fund. The study suggests that this coverage

Jamaica-gleaner.com - With the capacity to generate in excess of US$35 billion per year, health tourism appears to be a viable income-generating option, which, if pursued, could bring vast sums into the country's coffers. "There is a lot of potential for health tourism in Jamaica," said Dr. Wykeham McNeill, minister of tourism and entertainment.

Prepared by Christine A. Sandoval, University of the Incarnate Word, Undergraduate Student The 3rd Annual Center for Medical Tourism Research (CMTR) Conference took place Feb. 13-15, 2012, in San Antonio, Texas. This year's conference featured associate professor Dr. Tricia Johnson from Rush University, who served as the keynote speaker. Johnson's

Editor's Note: The April 16 issue of The New Yorker featured an interesting piece by staff writer James Surowiecki, called "Club Med." In it, Surowiecki explores not just the phenomena of medical travel, including impressive numbers for inbound travel to Thailand, Malaysia, and South Korea, but also the potential for even greater growth

Editor's Note: HealthDay.com recently featured an article regarding a debate over a study on the actual cost of cancer care in the United States. Led by Tomas Philipson, the chair in Public Policy at theUniversity of Chicago, the study looked at cancer care in the United States and in 10 European

by Maria Lenhart, travelmarketreport.com - News articles about medical tourism often focus on the exotic - patients traveling to India for invasive heart surgery and the like. Many outpatients going to these areas generally use outpatient housing. But for travel agents, the best opportunities in this burgeoning market are far

Steven J. Thompson, M.B.A., chief executive officer for Johns Hopkins Medicine International, will address the constituents at the "Well-Being and Medical Travel Conference 2012." The event will take place on June 20-21, 2012, at The Phoenician luxury resort in Scottsdale, Ariz. (www.well-beingtravelconference.com). Mr. Thompson was recently appointed by the

Constructionweekonline.com -Saudi Arabia is promoting increased specialization in its hospitals to account for domestic lifestyle factors, private healthcare requirements for expats, and a growing regional demand for top class healthcare facilities. The emergence of lifestyle-related diseases has created new opportunities for growth, according to the Colliers Q1 2012 'Healthcare Overview.'