The Surgical Procedure Broker - Have bum hip, will travel

After reading this is makes me wonder if there's a new opportunity opening in health care - brokering surgical procedures?  If they were able to get the surgery done in Oklahoma for $15,000 when the local hospital in Oakland that wanted $70,000, this makes you wonder if this trend will grow...a new profession could be on the horizon...the Surgical Procedure Broker...BD 

More Canadians are leaving the country to escape long waiting lists and get medical attention.  Maple Ridge businessman Charlie Wadge couldn't stand the pain any more. He couldn't even walk a city block and was told he'd have to wait more than 18  months for hip-replacement surgery in B.C.  So Wadge became one of an increasing number of "medical tourists" -- Canadians who are shelling out for surgery at private hospitals and clinics outside the country.

It's possible to get surgery at U.S. hospitals for only slightly more than going to India, according to Baker.  "We had a specific example last week," he says "We got a call from a man in Oakland, Calif., whose carotid artery was 90-per-cent blocked." The man was quoted $70,000 by his local hospital, plus the cost of the surgeon and anesthesiologist. He was told surgery in India would cost roughly $13,000. Baker got him surgery in Oklahoma City for $15,400.

Sending patients to the U.S. and India for inexpensive surgery is a rapidly expanding business, according to two Vancouver-based firms.  "We have been sending Canadians down to the U.S. for over four years now for, in many cases, life-saving procedures," Baker says. "We've been able to save six lives of Canadians who were on long waiting lists for critically necessary heart surgery, vascular surgery and various other things." Baker's company sends clients to the U.S. but advises against places such as India.

"We're doing that for Canadians as well," Baker says. "We're sending Canadians to facilities in the U.S. for surgery at rock-bottom prices." Baker says his company sends 10 people a month, on average, to the U.S. for different procedures, mainly knee and hip replacements.

Have bum hip, will travel