Spanish institutions support medical tourism sector as it becomes a great source of income for the country
According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), health tourism sector is worth around 75 billion euros worldwide, which has made it become one of the sectors with further economic potential.
Given the fact that Spain has a world-class health system, warm temperatures and competitive prices, the country now sees the sector as a great business opportunity. In this sense, tour operators, business leaders, private hospitals, and state health authorities all agree that Spain has what it takes to be a leading player.
Numbers talk for themselves, as it has been revealed that medical tourism is growing at a rate of 20% per year in Spain, in both revenue and patient volume, and the sector brought more than 500 million euros into the country in 2015. To make it even better, the number of medical tourists coming to Spain in the next five years is expected to double, and the latest economical estimations show that the sector will generate about 600 million euros in Spain in 2019.
One of the key elements responsible for the rise of the sector is the fact that, according to a study published by the country’s Ministry of Health, medical tourists in Spain spend ten times more money than the average tourist, which means an additional source of income for the Spanish tourism business.
The rise of health tourism in Spain over the past few years has given the Spanish tourism industry, private institutions and the administration a wakeup call to start making active efforts to capitalize on a sector that seems to be the future of tourism in Spain.
Thus, the Spanish Tourism Cluster of Health and tourism, Spaincares, is determined to boost the segment with the objective of achieving 200,000 travelers seeking medical care in the country in 2019. In order to achieve such ambitious goal , the Ministry of Tourism, is funding the project with 2,7 million euros with the final purpose of attracting foreign patients generating revenue and employment in Spain.
