Romania could cash in up to EUR 500 million to the state budget by 2015, all from medical tourism, which is insufficiently exploited locally, according to the country's Tourism Ministry. Last year, medical tourism brought the country EUR 250 million, according to the association of tourism agencies in Romania. Around 3 percent of the tourists who visited Romania last year came for medical services – around 60,000 people.

Around 70 percent of the medical tourism in the country is made of spa tourism, the rest being covered by dental tourism, esthetic surgery and anti-aging therapies. The boom in medical tourism came while the country's state medical care system has been degrading. This was to the advantage of private operators, which started to open more clinics and hospitals, to cover the gaps on the market.

Medical tourism has developed across the world, but less so in Romania. The aim is to offer tourists stays for medical purposes, in countries where medical services are lower than in their home countries. The tours would also include fun ways of spending time, besides the core of the trip, the medical treatment itself. The medical tourism market is estimated at 12 million tourists worldwide.

Three ministries in Romania, Tourism, Healthcare and Education have recently signed a partnership to collaborate in promoting medical tourism in Romania.

Corina Saceanu, corina@romania-insider.com