What is Medical Tourism?

Medical Tourism, Explained

Medical tourism is when patients travel to another country for medical treatment – typically elective procedures like hair transplants, dental work, IVF, or cosmetic surgery. An estimated 14 million people worldwide travel for medical care each year, and the global market is projected to exceed $30 billion.

For US patients, the primary driver is cost. Many elective procedures cost 40–80% less abroad than in the United States, even at internationally accredited hospitals and clinics. A hair transplant that might cost $8,000–$15,000 in the US can cost $1,800–$3,500 in Turkey. Dental veneers that run $1,000–$2,500 per tooth domestically may cost $250–$400 per tooth in Mexico or Colombia.

How Medical Tourism Works

The typical medical tourism journey involves five steps: researching procedures and destinations, selecting a clinic, coordinating logistics (travel, accommodation, consultations), undergoing the procedure abroad, and managing aftercare once home.

Patients can arrange this independently – contacting clinics directly, booking their own travel, and managing their own medical records – or they can use a medical tourism platform that handles coordination, clinic vetting, and patient protections.

Risks of Booking Directly with an Overseas Clinic

Booking directly with a clinic abroad is possible, but comes with meaningful risks. Patients may have difficulty verifying a clinic's credentials, have no recourse if something goes wrong, face language barriers during critical medical conversations, and lack coverage for complications that arise after returning home.

There is no universal accreditation standard across countries, and online reviews for international clinics can be unreliable or fabricated. Patients who book independently are responsible for their own due diligence, logistics, and post-procedure support.

What Medical Tourism Platforms Do

Medical tourism platforms act as intermediaries between patients and clinics. They typically vet clinics against quality and safety standards, coordinate the patient journey from inquiry to aftercare, and provide protections that patients would not have when booking directly.

JetWell, for example, is a US-based medical tourism marketplace that connects American patients with vetted international clinics for hair transplants, dental procedures, IVF, and cosmetic surgery. JetCover by GPS℠ is available for eligible procedures – medical complication insurance from Optimum Global Insurance Company Limited, not JetWell, with enhanced coverage tiers available for an additional fee.

Key features of a medical tourism platform like JetWell include a review of each clinic before it can take patients, one fixed price before you commit with no hidden fees, a care team that follows your booking, and complication insurance available for eligible procedures.

Most Popular Procedures for Medical Tourism

How to Choose a Medical Tourism Company

When evaluating medical tourism companies or platforms, patients should consider whether the company is US-based (for accountability and legal recourse), whether clinics are vetted against published quality standards, whether the platform offers complication coverage, whether pricing is transparent and all-inclusive, and whether the company provides end-to-end coordination including aftercare support.

Patients should be cautious of companies that require full upfront payment before travel, do not disclose clinic accreditation status, have no US-based entity or contact information, or lack any form of complication protection.

Frequently Asked Questions