China’s healthcare crisis: Both rich and poor travel abroad
26-Oct-17, Jing Travel
Despite the improving quality of treatment options available domestically, more and more wealthy Chinese are opting for medical tourism to treat serious illnesses, signaling an increasingly apparent health crisis in the country.
%20Junrong_Shutterstock.jpg "Chinas healthcare crisis Both rich and poor travel abroad (c) Junrong Shutterstock")
Image: Junrong / Shutterstock
Many wealthy Chinese are opting to pay large sums out of pocket to travel and gain access to high-quality care. According to Ctrip, in 2016 500,000 Chinese went abroad to receive care as opposed to seeking or continuing care in China.
Many residents of third and fourth-tier cities, many of which lack the kind of hospital infrastructure and medical expertise considered standard in developed countries, are traveling to India to seek treatment for diseases like cancer and liver disease.