LEGISLATION WATCH- Medical tourism legislation could lay the groundwork for a USD 1 bn industry: A proposed law to promote and regulate medical tourism in Egypt could bring in at least 250k more tourists and USD 1 bn in hard currency each year, Egypt Medical Tourism head Abdel Aaty El Manaei said, according to Al Shorouk. The draft bill would set up a national authority for health tourists, which the bill defines as those who come to receive hospital treatment, “ecotourists” visiting natural-healing sites, and disabled individuals entering the country for “accessible tourism.”

Where do we stand on the legislation? The proposed law saw committee-level discussions at the House of Representatives late last year, and was reportedly drafted by the House Tourism Committee in March. If it doesn’t make it to the general assembly for a vote this legislative session, we would have to wait until after the MPs return from their summer break for the start of the 2019-20 session, which should begin early October.