Upscale Consumers Most Receptive to Medical Tourism

Higher Income Consumers Less Risk-Adverse to Medical Tourism
Higher income, well-insured U.S. consumers are more receptive to traveling overseas for health treatment and are less concerned about the risks involved than those who are uninsured and lower income, according to the recently published A Survey of Consumers’ Perceptions Toward Medical Tourism from the Medical Tourism Research Center at the University of North Carolina. The research of 522 consumers in North Carolina identified demographic groups likely to participate in medical tourism and identified three components (risk-related, social-related, vacation-related) that explain their motivation to travel abroad for treatment.

New Hotel Brand Partners With Luxury Health Retreats.
With a stated purpose of combining Asian culture and eastern European philosophies, a new Asia-based luxury hotel brand called Secret Retreats has partnered with Luxury Health Retreats to offer wellness vacation packages. The packages are available in Indonesia at the Tagu Bali and Tagu Lombok resorts and in India at the Tree of Life Resort & Spa outside Jaipur. For more information, contact dream@secret-retreats.com.

St. Lucia to Host Wellness Retreat
St. Lucia will hold its third annual Health & Wellness Retreat on Nov. 1-3. Speakers will include celebrity chef Cat Cora; John Schumacher, founder and director of Unity Woods Yoga Center; Dr. John Douillard, a sports medicine specialist and Gabrielle Bernstein, an author and motivational speaker. In addition, trainer Dani Devaux will lead  multiple sunset beach boot camps based on her high intensity training program geared for all fitness levels.

The conference will also feature activities such as rainforest hikes, beachside Tai Chi and yoga and healthy cooking demonstrations. Priced at $595 per person, the weekend includes daily spa treatments, classes, receptions and transportation from selected hotels. For more information, click here.

Med Tourism Center Expands to Puerto Rico
The International Medical Tourism Center, formerly Medical Tours Costa Rica, has expanded its services to Puerto Rico. The company now offers medical and dental travel services to both Costa Rico and Puerto Rico in partnership with accredited providers and hospitals. “We believe Puerto Rico can become an important destination  for U.S. patients in need of surgeries such as hip and knee replacements as well as dental and cosmetic services,” said IMTC partner Bill Cook.

China to Develop Medical Tourism Zone
The island province of Hainan has published a plan to build China’s first special zone for medical tourism. Under the plan, the Boao Lecheng International Medical Travel Zone will be located near Qionghai City and Boao Town. The southern part of the zone will feature health care centers for the elderly, patients with chronic disease and those in poor health, while the northern part will focus on medical treatment and research. According to officials, overseas medical institutions will be allowed to set up business within the zone and frontier medical programs such as stem cell research will be allowed.