Ready for real Indian medicine?

From the same legal structure which brought you Harrah's Cherokee Casino, a North Carolina entrepreneur wants to build hospitals.

(This map of North Dakota shows the locations of its major Indian reservations. The Associated Tribes who are part of this story are in the pink bit to the left, called Fort Berthold.)

C. Alex Chien calls his concept "medical onshoring," and he has filed a patent claim on it. (I don't know how it's patentable myself, but you can file on anything.)

He writes:

With political sovereignty over quality-killing issues such as medical malpractice and a "clean-sheet" approach, Medical Onshoring could provide certain services (e.g., cardio-vascular, artificial knees) at prices at least 15% less than local hospitals.

Chien recently pitched his idea to the Associated Tribes in North Dakota. A reporter at the Minot Daily News made some calls including one to a doctor working on tribal medical care in the area.

They tried that with drug imports, said Monica Meyer. The government stepped in and stopped it.

Chien responded to that story on his blog, noting that drug imports have complex chain-of-custody issues and Alaska tribes have already set up their own dental clinics.

With insurers like Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Carolina already making deals with foreign hospitals, he writes, "Where's the logic in great nations making citizens fly 12,000 miles for affordable medicine?"

I know the obvious question, but it's rude and even racist to mention it. OK, it has to be asked.

How?