for Businesses Selecting a Medical Travel Company

DENVER, Co. – May 5, 2008 – As the nation’s employers, health plans, insurers, and third party administrators evaluate opportunities for introducing medical travel—the practice of traveling internationally for medical or dental care—into benefits packages, they will need value criteria for selecting the highest quality provider networks and the most reliable resources for medical travel services.  BridgeHealth International, Inc. (BridgeHealth; www.bridgehealthintl.com), the premier service provider with a focus on serving businesses and individuals for the delivery of international medical care, takes the lead in articulating for these stakeholders the key benchmarks for identifying a qualified medical travel company. 

“While medical travel may be unfamiliar territory for some business decision makers, there is soaring interest in weaving this option into benefits design,” says Victor Lazzaro, Jr., CEO of BridgeHealth International.  “Our goal in establishing these value criteria is to help businesses, insurance brokers and consultants identify the key service features when selecting a medical travel company for their employees.” 
Ten key value criteria from BridgeHealth for choosing a medical travel company include:

Quality healthcare:  A medical travel company with an explicit mission to provide access to accredited hospitals, clinics and providers carrying Joint Commission International (JCI) or equivalent accreditation.

Broad network and service offering:  A network which provides geographic choice, giving employers and employees more options for treatment and preferred destinations.

Transparent, cost-effective plans:  Price transparency and demonstrated savings for employers and employees to best be able to make informed decisions.

Safety:  A high regard for personal and medical safety in all provider locations—hospitals, outpatient facilities, and the destination country.
Premium experience:  Focus on the small details that contribute to a medical traveler’s ultimate level of satisfaction—a dedicated travel care coordinator, clear and consistent communication, preparation for international travel and thorough trip coordination.

Flexible benefit design: Willingness to create customized solutions as well as streamlining administrative functions such as provider sourcing, scheduling, evaluation and contracting, coordinating with employees, and payment.

Simplified billing:  An easy and understandable billing process that removes the undue administrative burden from employers.

Financial stability:  A medical travel company with the financial viability to deliver on promises to businesses and individuals. 

Deep healthcare experience:  A management team with extensive expertise in multiple healthcare disciplines to best bring strategic solutions, value and implementation. 

Solid infrastructure:  Functioning staff of employees serving all areas of the medical travel company to meet the ongoing activities, reporting requirements and needs of employers and employees.

“In this fast-evolving industry, it is essential for business decision makers not to lose sight of those aspects of a medical travel service provider that ultimately determine the success or failure of the provided benefit,” says Lazzaro.  “BridgeHealth believes that this success comes down to the level of employer and employee satisfaction achieved through the thoughtful management of each of these benchmarks.”