TEL AVIV, April 29 – RIA Novosti. The closure of air borders made it impossible to access to thousands of medical tourists with severe diagnoses, counting on treatment in Israeli hospitals, for many of them it will result in fatal consequences, said RIA Novosti the head of the Israeli Association of medical tourism mark Katznelson.
most Often in Israel going, those who are desperate to find a solution to their medical problems at home, said mark Katznelson. Most of the medical tourists – cancer patients. People come to Israel to treat breast cancer, prostate, kidneys, a brain tumor. Also many patients from abroad are treated by Israeli doctors with serious cardiac complications. Among medical tourists many children: cancer, epilepsy, psychiatric problems. For many of them forced pause in treatment can be fatal.
“Many of us are unable to help, and people will end up before it could happen thanks to Israeli medicine. This is a large percentage. I don’t know exactly how many, but if in the coming year about 25 thousand, then a month came, oriented, two thousand people. 70-80 percent of them severely ill with severe cases. If cancer treatment is delayed for months, then it is essential. Now we are talking about the fact that the pause can last for two or three months, and every month and a half thousand people are not being given the treatment that was to receive” – says Katznelson.
the Inflow of medical tourists to Israel was stopped in the middle of March, when the country closed its borders to foreigners. In recent months Israeli hospitals was almost completely reoriented to combat the coronavirus, the vast majority of planned operations were stopped, even for Israelis. However, with the gradual lifting of restrictions in the Association of medical tourism pin hope on the reopening of the industry to fall or even earlier.
“I think that September will be allowed the visit( to Israel). If it happens sooner that’d be great. Today in a press there was an information that allowed foreign nationals to be treated in Israel. While there are no flights between Russia and Israel – makes no sense to talk about the treatment of Russians here, but the curtain is already beginning to rise. We can see it. And I hope that in summer we can invite people here for treatment,” concluded mark Katznelson.
the Global economic crisis triggered by the pandemic coronavirus, could deprive many patients of the ability to pay for treatment in Israel, which will lead to a decrease in the number of medical tourists from Russia, according to the Association of medical tourism of Israel. However, there is hope that Israeli medicine, a high level which is evidenced by the successful struggle of local physicians with COVID-19 will remain in demand for patients from abroad. While none of the companies belonging to the Association, not closed.
Current data on the situation of COVID-19 in Russia and the world presented on the portal stopmanager.of the Russian Federation.
