[ben_w]

GP is probably referencing a meme in UK politics — there is a widespread beleif that health tourism is responsible for everything wrong with the NHS. (It isn’t yet responsible: was recently estimated to cost 0.3% of the NHS budget [1], and before anyone points out that future costs of this to the taxpayers don’t depend on current costs to the taxpayers, the NHS bills tourists [2] — however, it may still be good to be a health tourist from the USA, as even at the 150% rate for visitors without insurance I would expect it to be cheaper than the USA for many things).

[1] https://fullfact.org/health/health-tourism-whats-cost/

[2] https://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/uk-visitors/P...

[vidarh]

US patients might in fact still find it cheaper to even fly out to use private UK hospitals in some instances, and many of those private hospitals in turn rent operating theatre capacity etc. from NHS as needed, even thought both the private hospital and the NHS is profiting on it.

[jarfil]

Meanwhile, health tourism from the UK is causing so much pain for the Spanish healthcare system... or so say some

[ben_w]

Health tourism, or retired pensioners who moved there permanently?

(I’ll grant that some of the “some” who say this sort of thing seem to have difficulty drawing the right distinctions between such groups. At least two have angrily denied my examples of my brother and my girlfriend going from the UK to the Philippines and Hungary respectively for cheaper dental work).