International health news

Medical tourism is set to grow 25% year-over-year for the next ten years, with people traveling across borders in search of cheaper or better healthcare. While health insurers are currently reluctant to pay for medical expenses overseas, it will be interesting to see if the industry reacts to this trend and incorporates medical tourism into their cover.

Country updates

US Supreme Court revoked restrictive rules on abortion clinics in Texas, recognizing that a lack of sufficient health benefits limited the constitutional right to abortion. Before the ruling, spurious building requirements for clinics had to be met, such as specific corridor widths, types of doors and tiles on the floors, the size of elevators, ventilation systems, electrical wiring and parking. This severely limited the amount of possible clinics, while the new regulation will allow more medical centres to be opened.

If you have tried filling out insurance claims in India you’ll know that it can take hours. However, Remedinet has successfully managed to limit that time by eliminating procedures such as manual filing and phone calls. It was possible to automate the process and make it easier for people.

The Australian government has created a Digital Health Agency which will work in public and non-public sectors in order to support digital health innovation. An advisory board of doctors and specialists in digital issues and IT has also been established. The government aims to develop the health care system so it will be easier to monitor patients and treat them, especially while suffering from chronic diseases.

If there is something that people are often not aware about, then it’s saving for health care during retirement. The issue is applicable to everybody and employers should do more to educate employees on how they can plan to save for retirement. 

If you have a small business in the US is it worth providing health insurance for your employees? Sometimes it can be cheaper for the employee to buy their own, while providing the advantage of finding a plan that is more suited to them.

New research

New research on how nations’ populations have grown in height can show how their health has developed over the past 100 years.

It has been found that these fruit can reduce unexpected asthma attacks among sufferers.