She's a solo traveler and nurse. Healthcare in Thailand and Bali saves her thousands.

Jordynn Ison has recommendations for your next Thailand vacation. Don’t miss the sunny beaches, snorkeling, or the Bangkok temple tours.

Aside from the typical tourist destinations, Ison has one particular piece of advice: A primary care checkup at the local hospital is absolutely worth the price.

“I wish people would realize how much easier it really is,” she said. “I think some people get scared because they have it in their heads that if they don’t speak the language and they’re in another country, that it can’t be good care. Honestly, my experience is the exact opposite.”

Ison is a nurse living in Ohio. After graduating and working full-time in healthcare for a few years, she began solo traveling. She now splits her time between travel influencing and occasional nursing shifts in the Columbus area. She rarely books her own care near home — she said it’s more affordable to get bloodwork on vacation.

The 27-year-old is part of a growing cohort of Americans seeking healthcare abroad. Medical tourism is gaining traction as people of all ages look for ways to avoid steep medical bills and insurance red tape in the US. It’s a growing industry: The international health insurance market is projected to increase from nearly $32 billion in 2025 to $40 billion in 2030, with North Americans accounting for the largest share. The Centers for Disease Control reports that millions of Americans are traveling to places like Mexico and the Caribbean for everything from cosmetic surgery to cancer treatment.

Even for someone like Ison, who works in healthcare, booking appointments overseas feels “way cheaper.”

“If you want to check your thyroid and things like that, which I think is so important, especially for women, I love getting that kind of thing done when I’m traveling,” she said.

Ison no longer has US health insurance and gets most care abroad

As a 20-something, Ison is still figuring out what she wants for her career and finances. She said she qualified as a dependent on her parents’ health insurance until age 26, briefly had health insurance through her Ohio hospital, then decided to scale back to contingent hours as a nurse and embrace content creation as a second job. She loves the new arrangement, but it left her in a tricky spot: She no longer qualified for employer-sponsored insurance.

Instead of returning to a full-time nursing schedule or buying a plan off the marketplace, Ison opted to fold her medical appointments into her travel itineraries. She has recently been to Vietnam, Turkey, Australia, Indonesia, South Korea, Thailand, and Japan. A $50-per-month international insurance plan covers her basic care in 180 countries, she said.

“I am in places for months at a time, so I just pay per month, and that pretty much covers everything. It’s really easy to put bigger claims on that plan,” she said, adding that she will often pay out-of-pocket for smaller charges like labs and dental cleanings instead of filing with insurance, “because it’s like $15 or $20” in places like Bali.

Ison said that she typically pays less than $50 for most preventive care and basic tests overseas, especially in Asian countries. Even more involved care, like her recent dental crown procedure, was a fraction of the average US cost. Beyond the price difference, she said she can see providers in other countries much more quickly than in Ohio.

Of course, Ison said there can be risks to getting healthcare outside the US. She said she carefully reads reviews of clinics before booking and researches which providers speak English. Business Insider has heard similar stories from other travelers — most do thorough research before attending appointments, but the ease of international booking and low prices are common themes.

Ison isn’t sure if she would ever move abroad permanently, but she doesn’t plan to give up traveling — and medical tourism — anytime soon. Her latest trip included hiking and camping in Guatemala.

“I’m going to hike a very active volcano, so I’m really excited for that, she said.” I’ve been wanting to do it for years.”