International Journal of Health Policy and Management

International Journal of Health Policy and Management

Globalization and Medical Tourism: The North American Experience; Comment on “Patient Mobility in the Global Marketplace: A Multidisciplinary Perspective”

Document Type : Commentary

Author
Arturo Vargas Bustamante
Department of Health Policy and Management, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
10.15171/ijhpm.2014.57
Abstract
Neil Lunt and Russel Mannion provide an overview of the current state of the medical tourism literature and propose areas for future research in health policy and management. The authors also identify the main unanswered questions in this field ranging from the real size of the medical tourism market to the particular health profiles of transnational patients. In addition, they highlight unexplored areas of research from health economics, ethics, policy and management perspectives. To this very insightful editorial I would add the international trade perspective. While globalization has permeated labor and capital, services such as healthcare are still highly regulated by governments, constrained to regional or national borders and protected by organized interests. Heterogeneity of healthcare regulations and lack of cross-country reciprocity agreements act as barriers to the development of more widespread and dynamic medical tourism markets. To picture these barriers to transnational health services I use evidence from North America, identifying different “pull and push factors” for medical tourist in this region, discussing how economic integration and healthcare reform might shift the incentives to utilize healthcare abroad.
Keywords
Medical Tourism
Patient Mobility
Cross-Border Care
North America
Healthcare Reform
Subjects
  1. Lunt N, Mannion R. Patient mobility in the global marketplace: a multidisciplinary perspective. Int J Health Policy Manag 2014; 2: 155–7. doi: 10.15171/ijhpm.2014.47
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  4. Bustamante AV, Ojeda G, Castaneda X. Willingness to pay for cross-border health insurance between the United States and Mexico. Health Aff (Millwood) 2008; 27: 169–78. doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.1.169
  5. Gonzalez Block MA, Vargas Bustamante A, de la Sierra LA, Martinez Cardoso A. Redressing the Limitations of the Affordable Care Act for Mexican Immigrants Through Bi-National Health Insurance: A Willingness to Pay Study in Los Angeles. J Immigr Minor Health 2014; 16: 179–88. doi: 10.1007/s10903-012-9712-5
  6. Vargas Bustamante A, Laugesen M, Caban M, Rosenau P. United States-Mexico cross-border health insurance initiatives: Salud Migrante and Medicare in Mexico. Rev Panam Salud Publica 2012; 31: 74–80. doi: 10.1590/s1020-49892012000100011
  7. Bustamante AV, Mendez CA. Health Care Privatization in Latin America: Comparing Divergent Privatization Approaches in Chile, Colombia, and Mexico. J Health Polit Policy Law 2014. pii: 2743063. doi: 10.1215/03616878-2743063

  • Received Date 08 June 2014
  • Revised Date 22 June 2014
  • Accepted Date 22 June 2014
  • First Published Date 22 June 2014
  • Published Date 01 June 2014