European Court ruling may boost medical tourism in India

London, May 17 (UNI) A landmark ruling by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg could prove to be a boon for the Indian hospitals, which are already favoured destinations for medical tourism for many Britons who get tired with the long National Health Service (NHS) waiting list.

In a case brought by a British woman Yvonne Watts for re-imbursement of the cost of 4000 pounds for her hip operation in France, the court ruled that British patients who face an ''undue delay'' for treatment at home could recover it if doctors decided that the treatment was justified because of pain or disability or other pressing medical needs.

The ruling said that the British Government had wrongly interpreted patient's rights to get treatment in other countries.

The European judges also criticised NHS rules on treatment abroad for taking too little account of individual cases. They said primary care trusts must ensure a patient's waiting time ''does not exceed the period which is acceptable in the light of an objective medical assessment'' of clinical need.

The judges however did not award Mrs Watts a refund, saying it was up to the British courts to decide if she had faced an ''undue delay''. The case will go back to the Court of Appeal in England to decide if she should be refunded her medical costs.

Lawyers have said that the ruling gave the green light for ''health tourism'' by patients facing long waits who were prepared to go abroad and later reclaim the cost.

A large number of patients, including a few who required hip replacement and were unable to endure pain and disability waiting for treatment here, flew to India where they paid much less than they would have to here and have been satisfied with the treatment.

NHS managers said its effect would be limited as doctors were less likely to say that patients needed more urgent treatment than the NHS could provide. Mrs Watts pledged to give any refund she won to a medical charity.

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