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Alberta government "seriously considering" paying for international surgeries
Albertans could be next line to get their province to pay for their surgeries overseas if their wait has been too long
By SABRINA BADAL
ALBERTA -- The provincial government in Alberta may be following in Quebec’s foot steps sending patients overseas in order to drastically cut local wait times.
Sean Beardow, of Alberta Health and Wellness, stated in a interview with CBC that if an out-of-country procedure were medically necessary and unavailable in Alberta, that the province would seriously consider paying for it.
This is good news for patients who have become so fed up with waiting lists, that they begin seeking for medical procedures out of the country.
MedSolution.com has been helping hundreds of Canadian patients find viable options when searching for international hospitals with good reputations. MedSolution.com partner hospitals have wonderful reputations for their highly skilled and well trained physicians, nurses and other hospital staff.
If Alberta chooses to follow Quebec’s plan, this would mean that after being on a wait list for six months, the province would first look at an outpatient clinic to deliver the service. But after nine months, the province would pay for surgeries elsewhere in Canada or even outside the country.
"This is a bold move and we hope that other provinces follow suit, because this country’s health care system is in a crisis," said MedSolution.com spokesperson John Knox. "The system just can not keep up with the demand, leaving people to suffer unnecessarily for months when there are other safe and affordable options around the world."
Beardow says that people who seek monetary support from Alberta Health and Wellness for out of province treatments would be assessed on a case by case basis, meaning no precedence would be set for certain treatments or wait times.
MedSolution.com has partner hospitals in India, France, and Turkey, who offer world class care and no wait list at all for medical procedures and the cost is relatively low.
For example the average wait time in Canada for a Hip Replacement is 2 years. The cost of having it done in the US is approximately $40,000. However having the same treatment done in France would cost $15,000 and having it done in India would only cost $5800; which means there is a potential savings of $25,000.
It's very likely that Medical Tourism hasn't taken off in Alberta until now is because the province has the highest per capita public health care funding in the country, which had decreased the demand for out of province health care. However with waitlists in Alberta reaching record highs, the province is stepping and considering change.
With files from CBC
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