The internet was originally created to route data around broken nodes in the event of a massive disruption to the network caused by a nuclear war. The massive inefficiencies in the medical system in the United States can be nearly as devastating, and with the help of the internet and discount international air travel are beginning to route around the broken nodes in the health care network in the US and are traveling to countries like India for their life saving medical treatments. Wired has the story:

The dearth of affordable health insurance has engendered a new breed of what the New England Journal of Medicine classifies as “medical refugees” — patients traveling abroad for heart surgery and other crucial procedures — that has grown sharply in the past two years.

In 2005, 46 million Americans — or about 15 percent of the total population — lacked health insurance, according to a Census Bureau study. For families who don’t qualify for Medicare but can’t afford private coverage, a sudden accident or illness could lead to financial disaster.