Jackson Memorial 3rd Annual Conference

I'm a little late on this post but I just found some pictures online today so I thought since I had pictures I would go ahead and write a post! On Thursday, December 4, 2008 (I told you I'm a little late!) Jonathan Edelheit the President of the Medical Tourism Association and I traveled to Miami to attend Jackson Memorial's 3rd Annual Conference for Healthcare Policy Makers in the Caribeean Basin and Central America. Jon was a speaker and presented on Medical Tourism. It was a very nice confernece with a major prescense from the Caribbean. Here are a few pictures from the conference, for more information please go to: http://www.jmhi.org/conference/

MTA Signs Agreement with UAE Ministry of Health

The UAE Ministry of Health and the Florida-based Medical Tourism Association (MTA) signed today an agreement for cooperation in the related field.The agreement mandates MTA's activities in the UAE, as it will promote the interests of the healthcare providers and medical tourism facilitators in the country. MTA is an international non-profit association made up of the top international hospitals, healthcare providers, medical travel facilitators, insurance companies, and other affiliated companies and members with the common goal of promoting the highest level of quality of healthcare to patients in a global environment. In the presence of the Health Minister HE Humaid Mohammed Al Qattami and other officials, the agreement was signed by Director at the minister's office Nasser Khalifa Al Budoor and Jonathan Edelheit, President of MTA.

Monterrey Mexico Conference Early Bird Ends!

Just a reminder to everyone thinking about going to Monterrey Mexico for the Latin America Medical Tourism Congress on April 27-29, 2009! Early Bird Pricing ends this Friday!!!

Conference Early Bird Registration: $399

MTA Conference Eraly Bird Registration: $319.20

SIGN UP TODAY!!!!

Media & Bronze Sponsor: Reach MD

The World Medical Tourism & Global Health Congress would like to announce ReachMD as a Media and Bronze Sponsor for the 2nd Annual World Medical Tourism & Global Health Congress in 2009! We are looking forward to the having ReachMD Sponsor and Exhibit!

Headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, ReachMD is a revolutionary multi-channel programming source offering communication, information, and free continuing medical information (CME) for credit. ReachMD is the first and only radio channel created by medical professionals for medical professionals, available on XM Satellite Radio Channel 160 and online at www.reachmd.com, and with free CME content available on the first and only CME application developed for the Apple iPhone.

For more information,

please contact Julie Carson: jcarson@reachmd.com or 312-342-6500

MTA Members on the Move!

The Move is On! Three Medical Tourism Facilitator Members of the Medical Tourism Association (MTA) are the first facilitators to enter into agreements with insurance companies and marketers of insurance products to offer medical tourism to their members and participants.

“The Medical Tourism Association has worked very hard to promote our members. We are very excited that our members are the only companies in the world to have received these special agreements and relationships to coordinate medical care for Americans traveling overseas. We are even more excited that the hospitals which have been selected to receive patients from America are also Medical Tourism Association members,” said Jonathan Edelheit, President of the Medical Tourism Association.

We are very proud of one of our Members, WorldMed Assist, which has received an agreement with Swiss Re Insurance Company. Swiss Re a leading and highly diversified global reinsurer which operates in more than 25 countries recognized medical tourism as part of their existing insurance policies and are making it available throughout the United States to employers who purchase their insurance. “By recognizing medical travel coverage offered by our self-funded stop-loss employer client base, we facilitate the availability of top-quality health care at more affordable levels than is possible in the U.S.,” said Matt Leming, Vice President and Sales Leader within Swiss Re's Commercial Insurance Division. Swiss Re has selected WorldMed Assist as the third-party medical logistics provider to manage its medical tourism option. Medical Tourism coverage will be coordinated with the employer's primary policy and with the patient's primary physician in the U.S through WorldMed Assist. As Swiss Re's medical logistics provider, WorldMed Assist will ensure that strict standards for the level of care offered by the medical staff, the hospital, clinic and any recuperative care facilities are followed. http://www.worldmedassist.com/

The second member, Surgical Trip and USNow are joining forces to offer a medical tourism program to all of it's members. Surgical Trip, LLC, of Boca Raton, Florida, has entered into an agreement with USNow, L.P., of Plano, Texas, to offer Surgical Trip’s medical tourism program to all USNow groups. This monumental event will be the first time a national marketer of limited medical health insurance plans will make a medical tourism program available to all of its members. The Surgical Trip medical tourism program will provide USNow members with access to surgical procedures at significantly lower cost when performed at select, accredited hospitals overseas. “The high quality of care available overseas through medical tourism is amazing and the cost savings are equally so. We felt medical tourism would add meaningful value for all participants on USNow limited medical plans. We are extremely excited to have Surgical Trip as our partner,” said David Lindsey, President and CEO of USNow. www.surgicaltrip.com

This is an exciting moment in the employee benefits world, as we see a major marketer like USNow, enhancing value by offering our medical tourism program to all of its members,” said Tom O’Hara, President of Surgical Trip. The program will be offered to all new USNow groups and all existing USNow groups upon their renewal.

We are also very pleased to announce that Healthbase has collaborated with Wellpoint Blue Cross Blue Shield to handle their “pilot” program of offering medical tourism for Americans traveling to India. Healthbase will handle all the medical tourism logistics and arrangements for WellPoint members. “We advise insurance companies and employers to work with medical tourism facilitators who are Medical Tourism Association members because the association has done a level of due diligence and the facilitators have agreed to promote transparency in quality and pricing,” said Renee-Marie Stephano, Chief Operating Officer of the Medical Tourism Association and editor of the Medical Tourism Magazine. “Healthbase, Surgical Trip and WorldMed Assist are excellent companies, as well as the other medical tourism facilitator members of our association.”

“We are pleased to work collectively with Healthbase to deliver an international medical tourism pilot product to our clients who are interested in exploring a medical tourism solution," said Dr. Razia Hashmi, vice president and medical director for WellPoint's national accounts division. "Medical tourism is a promising option for improving access to affordable, quality health care. Working with Healthbase, our case managers will coordinate all steps of the medical tourism process for members interested in receiving care overseas." Healthbase will assist WellPoint members with coordination of the trip, medical appointment scheduling, digital medical records transfer, and concierge travel service," according to Saroja Mohanasundaram, CEO of Healthbase. www.healthbase.com

Who is the Medical Tourism Association?

The Medical Tourism Association is the first international non-profit association made up of the top international hospitals, healthcare providers, medical travel facilitators, insurance companies, and other affiliated companies and members with the common goal of promoting the highest level of quality of healthcare to patients in a global environment. Our Association promotes the interests of its healthcare provider and medical tourism facilitators members. The Medical Tourism Association has three tenets: Transparency, Communication and Education.

For more information contact:
http://www.medicaltourismassociation.com/
info@MedicalTourismAssociation.com
561-791-2000