Many getting medical care abroad

The reason to go overseas for surgery is simple: You could pay a fraction of what you'd pay in the United States.

A hip replacement stateside can run between $44,000 and $63,000, vs. about $12,000 to $18,000 abroad, even with travel and hotel costs included. Although prices vary depending on your destination and the type of surgery, it isn't unusual to save as much as 80 percent.

Greg Scandlen, president of Consumers for Health Care Choices, says the best candidates for overseas treatment are individuals who lack health insurance or have high-deductible health plans. People who are uninsured "pay out of their own pocket regardless of where the surgery takes place," says Scandlen.

Plus, says Jonathan Edelheit, vice president of insurance group OptiMed Health/United Group Programs, foreign hospitals often rival those found in the United States.

No doubt Michael Hornholtz would agree. After having surgery to straighten a broken nose in 1974, Hornholtz, now 66, experienced chronic nerve pain. For years, he searched for a doctor who would correct the problem. After a friend suggested that he might have better luck abroad, Hornholtz contacted PlanetHospital, a medical-tourism company.

PlanetHospital (800-243-0172; www.planethospital.

com) found him a doctor in Singapore who would perform nasal surgery to repair the nerve damage. The company made his travel arrangements and had a staff member tend to him from the time he landed in Singapore until he returned home.

Two weeks after his surgery, Hornholtz was thrilled with the outcome. Because he couldn't find a surgeon in the United States, price wasn't an issue. But, he says, the total cost, which he estimates was about $12,000, was well worth it. Hornholtz paid all his expenses directly to the providers, from the travel arrangements to the hospital and doctor. PlanetHospital charged a $395 concierge fee.

If you intend to go overseas for medical care and are making arrangements on your own, check ahead and check credentials. Ask whether the hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission International, the international arm of the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the major U.S. accrediting body.