MOSCOW, August 14 In order to develop medical tourism in Russia, it is necessary to organize work to attract tourists from the CIS and BRICS countries, as well as update the national strategy for the development of medical tourism, according to a study by the consulting company Yakov and Partners, which is available to .
They calculated that the volume of the medical tourism market in Russia by 2030 could amount to between $2.2 and $7.6 billion, depending on the scenario under which it develops. For now, the company estimates the contribution of medical tourism to the domestic GDP at less than 0.01% — based on data for 2023, this corresponds to less than $0.2 billion. To improve the situation, according to experts, it is necessary to eliminate key obstacles and revise the national strategy for activities in this area.
«In the medium term, until 2026, it is advisable to step up efforts to increase the flow of medical tourists from the CIS countries, including those who do not speak Russian but speak English fluently. In parallel, the readiness of the infrastructure in specially selected clinics (both public and private) in various regions of Russia should be tested to ensure the mass reception of foreign medical tourists from friendly countries abroad, primarily BRICS+,» Maxim Moseyko, an expert in the healthcare practice at Yakov & Partners, was quoted in the report.
Speaking about the development of medical tourism in Russia in the long term — until 2027 and beyond, Moseyko believes that special attention should be paid to the accreditation of medical institutions, quality standards and receiving feedback from patients. «The successful digital transformation of the entire healthcare system in Russia and the increasing role of insurance companies in the medical care of foreign citizens are also of great importance,» he noted.
As experts note, due to shortcomings in statistical accounting in Russia, any foreign citizen receiving any medical service in the country is considered a «medical tourist», including a migrant who undergoes a mandatory medical examination. «This makes it difficult to form an objective picture of the state of the Russian medical tourism market. Other problems in this area include the departure of some medical companies and international accreditation systems from Russia, difficulties with booking airline tickets, paying for hotels and the medical services themselves due to banking restrictions,» the analysts said.
In the short term, on the horizon of 2024-2025, the authors of the study propose adopting an updated national strategy for the development of medical tourism in Russia. At the same time, it is recommended to rethink the approach to using the single-window concept at all stages of the medical tourist's customer journey in Russia. As noted in the study, it is also important to take measures to develop domestic medical tourism in order to reduce the outgoing flow from Russia.