I wouldn't do it. Who knows what their policies and procedures entail for your safety. Although I have a dr. friend that took his wife for a breast augmentation in Mexico. He sat in the operating room with a coffee and his wife ended up with a gosh awful infection after she came home. Surprise, surprise. I go by the premise, you get what you pay for.
Coke is every where!
I wouldn't go based on just economics. I've had medical care in Puerta Vallerta, Guadalajara, and La Penita and I've had as good and sometimes better care in Mexico. I have all of my dental work done in Mexico. My Mexican dentist has more updated instruments and radiology than my U.S. dentist had. The exam, xrays, and deep cleaning of one quadrant cost .00 vs over 0.00 in the U.S. I got the same results and more pampering. I live there for part of the year so I'm comfortable with the medical care in the larger hospitals in Mexico. Both of my doctors were trained in the U.S. One at UCLA and Scripps and the other at Baylor Uni in Texas. The other doctor in La Penita is a graduate of Univ. of Guad. medical school and she's an excellent physician.
Believe me the U.S. isn't the only place that you can get good medical care and treatment. There are many countries that have excellent care. I have a friend who went to New Delhi for a hip procedure and did wonderfully. He's of Indian descent and decided to go to India for the surgery with a savings of tens of thousands of dollars. He's also a physician.
You'll hear horror stories from all around the world. If you go outside the U.S. for treatment you have to be diligent and do your homework. Lindy
Looking for the cheapest doesn't always mean that the medical care will be bad. You have to go to physicians who are affliated with large hospitals. There is a book that has physician and hospital listings. They have a CV of each physician and also hospital standings in that country.
Many Americans are traveling out of the country for hip resurfacing procedures, and rave about the professionalism and superior care they receive. The procedure was actually developed overseas, so foreign facilities are more experienced in it than are US physicians and hospitals.
I think it is a viable option, but requires a lot of research and planning before proceeding. And the important issue is that it remain a choice, not a requirement. If insurance companies are permitted to force patients to travel out of the country, I think you will see a huge backlash from the AMA and the medical community as a whole - rightfully so.
Just another symptom of a broken system in this country.
I think Hillhoney hit the point....as long as it is a choice then its no big deal.
Lin, I don't think anyone was trying to imply you would get subpar medical care but the unknown coupled with the shear logistics of time and travel should make one concerned. Not everyone can pack up and fly 15 hours to India for a knee replacement. Not everyone can leave home for 6-8 weeks. Not everyone can arrange someone who is willing to provide immediate followup for someone elses operation. Scheduling a complicated surgery or frankly any surgery involves more than picking a name. And all these articles only speak of the rosey picture...for any patient to make a truley informed decision one must have a complete picture
Yep... no way I would leave my home and family for a couple weeks... and I certainly would not want to drag my husband and kids to a foreign country to watch me recuperate for that long. I can be useful at home even while recuperating... you don't need to be able to move around to help someone with homework, or read a story, or holler at fighting boys.
I understand the problems that people would have with the logistics of scheduling your time away from home. Under most circumstances I wouldn't recommend it but there is a segment of the population that can and will take advantage of the medical treatment and care in other countries. Like I said earlier if you choose this route you need to do your homework and be diligent about it before you can make an informed decision.
I talked for a long time with a friend who needs a knee replacement. She's been on the waiting list for over a year for a TKR and is now in a wheelchair and taking Codeine regularly for pain. She's made up her mind to have her surgery in Guadalajara by a surgeon trained in the U.S. Her surgery will cost her approximately ,000. She's far from rich and is borrowing the money to have the surgery. Her health insurance system isn't working for her and so she's chosen to take control of her situation. Unfortunately for her she has to leave her country to have surgery. She'll be recovering in her friend's motorhome. Sometimes, there's no choice.
I wouldn't want to see the time come when my insurance company would insist that I go to another country to have surgery because it's cost effective for them. It may come to the point that they'll pay 100% of the charges, your air fare, hotel room, private nurse, meals, etc. because it would be cheaper. I sure hope not. Lindy
I've read about folks that had no insurance (lost job, etc.) or were underinsured, and couldn't afford the cost of the needed surgery in the US, so went overseas. I think theres an organization, Joint Commission International, that reviews and accredits overseas hospitals and medical facilities.
Now some insurance companies are offering to cover overseas treatment? Wow, what does that say about our health care system, that Americans with insurance have to go to developing countries for affordable medical care. That's sicko.
I think most people would choose to have medical procedures done in the states, near their home and families, though I could see how "snow birds," retirees, who spend time in countries w/communities of Americans, Canadians, etc. , would feel comfortable and save money having medical care in their host countries. But if a person had adequate insurance coverage, why would they go out of the US for care? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see the Taj Mahal, but I don't think I'd be doing much sightseeing after a hip replacement.
Of course thi issue really isn't unique to Americans. People in Britain who are waitlisted for NHS care often will travel abroad to expediate their care.
The sad thing is these foreign doctors, in most cases who are American and British trained, go back to their countiries to treat ( comparatively speaking) affluent foreigners when they live in countries where the medical care for their poor native populations is minimal or non existant.
You're right in the assumption that the "poor native populations" medical care is minimal or non existent in some of those countries. Many of the doctors in other countries work in clinics and have practices in the lesser than desirable areas besides working and treating "affluent foreigners" and to top it off they make housecalls. Some prefer to work out of the large hospitals and treat the affluent. No different than some of the doctor population in the U.S.
They're aren't enough medical personnel in those countries to take care of the people in the rural areas and the crowded cities. There aren't enough clinics, hospitals, and other infrastructure to support the communities. I don't know the answers but I do know that the governments are at fault for not developing a better delivery method for healthcare to the poorer populations of their country. Those countries have no one else to support their healthcare delivery method other than the government.
You're right Joie, it is "sicko" and I don't have the answers. Neither one of my insurances will pay if I'm seen out of the country. They will reimburse me 80% once I've paid up front and present the claim to them. The odd thing is that the costs in another country are usually so much less but my insurance won't pay. They'll gladly send me out of the country to have my hip surgery but not pay if I seek the treatment on my own. A catch 22 at it's finest.
My friend with the wacky knee is British. Lindy
What's disturbing about this "seeking medical care outside of the US business" is that we spend more on health care than any other country in the world, yet we fall way short in providing access to affordable health care to all US citizens. And its no longer a problem for those that lack health insurance, but also for those with health insurance, the underinsured with inadequate coverage, as demonstrated by this subject.
When discussions about health care reform comes up, the UK system is an argument why universal health care is a bad idea, but many democratic, capitalistic countries have universal health care -- they cover all their citizens, and spend much less than the US - 16% of our economy is spent on health care. Germany and Switzerland spend around 11% and Japan and Taiwan spend 6-8%. These systems aren't perfect, but no one is denied care nor goes bankrupt cuz of medical costs, as in the US.
Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, said Congress doesn't have the guts to deal with health care reform, and year after year, we see Congress back down from this issue, demonstrated by this current stalemate over Medicare cuts to docs. Nothing is done about what triggers the reduction -- the "sustainable growth rate formula," which basically means when costs exceed revenue, cut costs. Well, health care costs are increasing and the number of folks going onto Medicare will increase with baby boomers retiring, so Congress better start dealing with reform, or else we'll all be going overseas for health care.
To see website about Germany, Switzerland, Japan, Taiwan and UK's health care systems, and how they do it, see:
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