NASCAR's Kyle Petty and the Growing Medical Tourism Market

Medical tourism - where people travel abroad to receive affordable and quality medical, dental and surgical care - is one of the fastest growing markets in the world and we'll be joined by Jonathon Edelheit, President of the Medical Tourism Association to discuss this new travel trend. Then, In 1995, NASCAR driver Kyle Petty combined his passion for helping others and love of motorcycles to create the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America. Kyle will join the Travel'n On Radio Show to talk about his upcoming Charity Ride, his career and his travels.

Episode Segments:

Jonathan Edelheit discusses Medical Tourism Ian and Tonya explore the growing medical tourism industry. They are joined by Jonathan Edelheit, President of The Medical Tourism Association. Many people are beginning to travel in order to receive medical care. Costs can be lower abroad for dental work and cosmetic work. Mr. Edelheit explains the rise in popularity of travel for such procedures.
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The new trend in medical tourism Ian and Tonya continue their discussion with Jonathan Edelheit, President of The Medical Tourism Association. They begin to explore the pros and cons of such travel. Mr. Edelheit explains the luxurious conditions that many may experience abroad. Also, he explains insurance issues that may arise with such care.
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The Kyle Petty Charity Ride In 1995, NASCAR Superstar Kyle Petty combined his passion for helping others with his love of motorcycles to create the Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America. This years ride marks the 15th anniversary, and Kyle joins Ian and Tonya to give a little more information on nine day trek that stretches across the country.
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More on the ride with Kyle Petty Kyle tells us more about the Ride Across America, including the ride route, and how you can get involved, even if you arent on the road with him. He also talks about some of the other charities that are involved, including his own Victory Junction Camp.
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Learn More About The Kyle Petty Charity Ride The Chick-fil-A Kyle Petty Charity Ride Across America takes place May 8 – 17. NASCAR driver and Charity Ride founder Kyle Petty will lead a field of more than 200 riders as they wind their way from the Pacific Northwest to the East Coast in an effort to raise awareness of and funds for Victory Junction and other children’s charities.

Guest(s) Appearing on this Episode

Kyle Petty Kyle Eugene Petty was born June 2, 1960. He is a native of Randleman, North Carolina. He is the son of NASCAR racing legend Richard Petty. He currently drives the #45 Marathon Petroleum Company Dodge Charger for Petty Enterprises. Petty originally did not intend to become a race car driver. He was a star in many sports in high school, including football and basketball and received scholarship offers from many colleges. However, Kyle did eventually decide to follow in his father's footsteps and he won his first stock car race, the ARCA 200 event at Daytona International Speedway in 1979 using a retired (but refurbished) 1978 Dodge Magnum race car that his father campaigned the previous year. He then tried to enter the Winston Cup soon after that, but crashed during qualifying in March, May, and just before the July 4th Daytona races. Using one of the few remaining Magnums (the others were wrecked beyond repair), Kyle qualified for the August 1979 Talledega race and finished a very respectable 9th place. The following year, 1980, when spare cars were available, Kyle raced as often as he could, but did not have a successful year, driving as a teammate to his father at Petty Enterprises. He left his father's team in 1985 to drive for the Wood Brothers team. His first Winston Cup win came the following next year, 1986, at Richmond International Raceway. Petty returned to driving for Petty Enterprises in 1996 and is now CEO of that team. Petty's son Adam Petty had begun a promising career in racing as well, but was killed in 2000 in a practice accident at New Hampshire International Speedway. Upon his son's death, Petty finished the 2000 season racing his son's car in the Busch Series. Petty is active in many charitable causes, such as the Victory Junction Gang Camp for terminally-ill children, which he established to honor his late son, as well as an annual charity motorcycle ride across the country.

John Edelheit Previous to the Medical Tourism Association, Mr. Edelheit was in charge of United Group Programs a large US healthcare administrator with clients such as DaimlerChrysler, Sysco, State of Florida and Idaho. Mr. Edelheit was the pioneer of medical tourism in the US and the first person to implement medical tourism into a US health insurance plan. Believing that Medical Tourism could be a solution to the US healthcare crisis, Mr. Edelheit left United Group Programs to work for the Medical Tourism Association and to help educate the world on the high quality of care available overseas. Mr. Edelheit has been featured or mentioned in over 40 magazines from Time Magazine to Newsweek, and in February who was featured as a visionary in US healthcare for his activities in Medical Tourism by Executive Managed Healthcare Magazine, which goes out to 40,000 top US healthcare executives. Mr. Edelheit is also an attorney and is considered an expert in US healthcare. Click here to visit his website