For the first time, the government and private sector in Mexico are working together to make sure Mexico offers all the medical services and surgeries that foreign patients are looking for in Medical Tourism.
“The lack of joint strategies make the companies and medical tourism destinations a lost business opportunity,” says Director of International Business at Tecnológico de Monterrey, Camus Sante Fe.
Since 2013, executives of medical tourism companies and government representatives who oversee Mexico’s hospitals and healthcare, have come together with the Medical Tourism Project and Coparmex.
The project aims to create a product that includes flight, hotel, and medical care and market the packages to travel agencies in the US and Canada.
Officials from Coparmex have recently visited Puerto Vallarta to meet with companies who are interested in promoting this type of tourism in the area.
The National Foreign Trade Bank and Secretary of Tourism have plans to support companies through marketing campaigns and funding programs in medical tourism.
Medical Tourism emerged in Mexico three decades ago without any program or strategy because foreigners began to notice they could receive the same treatments and care in Mexico at a fraction of the cost.
Since then, patients in the US and Canada have traveled to Puerto Vallarta and other cities, such as, Tijuana, Monterrey, and Cancun for cosmetic, weight loss, and dental care.
Mexico receives one million patients each year, just over 4% of the 23.7 million foreign visitors in 2013.
Medical Tourism visitors spend between $5,000 – $20,000 USD, while traditional tourists spend an average of $1,200.
For the first time, the government and private sector in Mexico are working together to make sure Mexico offers all the medical services and surgeries . . .
