The National Center for Policy Analysis, in an article released today, concludes that “as more insured patients begin to travel abroad for low-cost medical procedures, medical tourism will result in sorely needed competition in the American health care industry.”

The NCPA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy research organization with a goal of developing and promoting private alternatives to government regulation and control. The latest analysis was prepared by Devon Herrick, who also authored a lengthier study of medical tourism and travel in Nov. 2007 titled Medical Tourism: Global Competition in Health Care.

The latest analysis recommends direct public policy changes at the state and federal level:

• Modernize State Licensing Laws. Medical licensing laws should be brought into the information age, where distance (or country) is irrelevant in procuring many medical services. Foreign physicians who meet standard criteria should be considered licensed if their skills have been evaluated and approved for inclusion in an insurer’s network.

• Allow Financial Incentives. Insurers and employer-sponsored health plans should be able to offer financial incentives for seeking care abroad, much as they do currently for medical services within their network, without facing increased liability risks. Legislation such as ERISA should not penalize providers who offer lower cost treatment options for patients willing to travel overseas for care.

• Lead by Example. Federal and state government should lead by example, by allowing Medicare and Medicaid programs to send willing patients abroad. Medicare would particularly benefit from cost savings since it pays for a large volume of orthopedic and cardiac procedures.

Herrick also singled out BridgeHealth International for the company’s provider network of offshore hospitals, clinics and physicians, and working with insurers and employer health plans to facilitate workers’ treatment abroad.