Medical Tourism
http://www.chiangmainews.com/ecmn/viewfa.php?id=2241Vol. 17 No. 7 July 2008
"Safaris and beach getaways aside, the real attraction for most medical tourists is the price. The cost of surgery in Thailand, India or South Africa can be one tenth of what it is in the US or Europe, sometimes less, even after factoring in the cost of flights and lodgings. A heart-valve replacement operation that costs $200,000 in the US goes for $10,000 in India, including air fare and a vacation package; a metal-free dental bridge worth $5,500 in the US costs about $500 in Thailand; a full facelift in the US costing upwards of $20,000 can be obtained in South Africa for about $1,250. Sexual reassignment (sex change) surgery is in the top ten procedures people come to Thailand for and costs less than $6,000 whereas in the US it runs upwards of $15,000."
