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Medical Tourism in Israel

[Jerusalem Report] Netty C. Gross - When one-and-a-half-year-old Anna Sherevenko was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, her physicians in St. Petersburg, Russia, recommended a bone marrow transplant in the U.S., Germany or Israel. Her parents chose Israel because it was the least expensive of the three. Anna is one of many who come to Israel to receive medical treatment. The money that these "medical tourists" spend is a valuable contribution to the economy. In 2006, 15,000 foreigners came to Israel's hospitals for treatment, generating some $40 million in revenue; in 2007 the number of patients grew to 20,000 and hospitals more than tripled their intake to $150 million because more complex, and therefore, costlier, procedures were performed. The sum includes money spent by family members who stay at hotels and might do some sightseeing and shopping on the side. Amitai Rotem, marketing director at the Hadassah Medical Organization, says Hadassah started the medical tourism program in earnest just five years ago and it generated some $500,000 in its first year. Today revenue has topped $10 million, with 200 to 300 admissions each month. Herve Deknuydt, administrative director of medical tourism at Sheba Hospital, near Tel Aviv, says his institution treated several hundred patients in 2008. Most came from Mediterranean countries, such as Cyprus, Greece and Turkey, or from the former Soviet Union, particularly the eastern states, such as Azerbaijan, Georgia and Kazakhstan.
2008-09-26 01:00:00
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