Are Increasing Healthcare Costs Driving Medical Tourism?

 

The landscape of healthcare and health insurance and payments is getting increasingly volatile. Americans have a lot to navigate and, for some, the rising prices and overall complexity are pushing them to the practice of medical tourism.

Americans are flocking to other countries for care, and this medical tourism could have an oversized and lasting impact on the future of American care and beyond.

To learn more, MarketScale sourced the insights of Wesley Jacobs, Founder of Apollo Medical Travel, which aims to “make medical care accessible by connecting patients with highly trained physicians in Latin America and supporting them from the initial consultation through recovery.”

Jacobs:

“First, let’s frame the problem. In 2018, the United States spent $3.6 trillion on healthcare, which comes down to about $11,000 per American.

This is roughly double what the citizens of other comparably developed nations pay for their healthcare. And, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid, these prices are expected to rise faster than inflation.

By 2028, we can expect to be paying $18,000, or 20% of our GDP, for every American.

So, American consumers are savvy through word of mouth and through the power of the internet. They can easily find medical providers abroad that are offering the same procedures at a much more affordable price than their colleagues in the United States.

So, they’re pulling out their passport for their health.”

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Sports Ownership
Alts Innovators: Gennaro Leo on Sports Ownership
October 20, 2025

Welcome to the second episode in our mini-series on the alternative asset market. Gennaro Leo is a sports executive and the co-founder of Austin Sports Ventures, a firm that partners with venture capital and private equity firms to invest in and operate assets across professional sports leagues, teams, and high-growth technology startups. In this…

Read More
location-based entertainment
The Business of Play: Building Community Through Location-Based Entertainment
October 19, 2025

From Dallas to New York, cities are reimagining how people play and connect with one another. The rise of “location-based entertainment” (LBE) spots like Topgolf, Sandbox VR, and Goodsurf Beach Club signals a new chapter in the way community and recreation come together. With over 65% of Goodsurf’s visitors returning multiple times a month,…

Read More
Just Thinking
Just Thinking… About How NeuraPoints Is Building the Bridge Between Minds and Machines
October 17, 2025

Artificial intelligence has reached a crucial inflection point. Once imagined as a fast track to artificial general intelligence, the field has instead hit a plateau—prompting leaders, educators, and innovators to rethink AI’s true purpose. As companies and schools race to adopt automation, questions about cost, ethics, and human purpose are rising to the forefront. According…

Read More
college
Gamifying College Readiness: How Loper Makes the Enrollment Journey More Engaging!
October 16, 2025

High schoolers are overwhelmed — and not just by homework. The path to college can feel like a maze of forms, essays, and deadlines, with little guidance on where to begin. A recent survey found that nearly three-quarters of students describe the college application process as “difficult.” For many, that difficulty isn’t academic; it’s…

Read More