Medical tourism is a growing sector in India. In October 2015, India's medical tourism sector was estimated to be worth US$3 billion. It is projected to grow at a CAGR of 200% by 2020, hitting $9 billion by 2020. In 2017, 495,056 patients visited India to seek medical care. The top 10 source countries for patients were Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Iraq, Maldives, Oman, Yemen, Uzbekistan, Kenya, Nigeria and Tanzania.

To encourage applications and ease the travel process for medical tourists, the government has expanded its e-tourism VISA regime on February 2019, to include medical visas. The maximum duration of stay under this visa is 6 months.

The promotion of Medical Tourism in India has helped private players capitalize on this market opportunity. Private institutions and organisations such as Max Healthcare and Health Travellers Worldwide have consulted and treated up to 50,000 foreign patients in hospitals across the country. Industrialist Sanjay Dalmia's healthcare company Dalmia Healthcare on 2018, declared medical treatment consultation to international patients.

Attractions

Advantages of medical treatment in India include reduced costs, the availability of latest medical technologies, and a growing compliance on international quality standards, Doctors trained in western countries including US and UK, as well as English speaking personnel, due to which foreigners are less likely to face language barrier in India.

Cost

Most estimates found that treatment costs in India start at around one-tenth of the price of comparable treatment in the United States or the United Kingdom. The most popular treatments sought in India by medical tourists are alternative medicine, bone-marrow transplant, cardiac bypass, eye surgery, and hip replacement.

Quality of care

India has 33 JCI accredited hospitals. However, for a patient traveling to India, it is important to find the optimal doctor-hospital combination. After the patient has been treated, the patient has the option of either recuperating in the hospital or at a paid accommodation nearby. Many hospitals also give the option of continuing the treatment through telemedicine.

The city of Chennai has been termed "India's health capital".Multi- and super-specialty hospitals across the city bring in an estimated 150 international patients every day. Chennai attracts about 45 percent of health tourists from abroad arriving in the country and 30 to 40 percent of domestic health tourists. Factors behind the tourists inflow in the city include low costs, little to no waiting period,[14] and facilities offered at the specialty hospitals in the city. The city has an estimated 12,500 hospital beds, of which only half is used by the city's population with the rest being shared by patients from other states of the country and foreigners. Dental clinics have attracted dental care tourism to Chennai.