Whether you are a seasoned medical tourist or have only just begun to consider health travel to Mexico, choosing the right hospital for a procedure can be a daunting task. With the wide variety of facilities available and the many different doctors at each, it can be a very difficult process to select the ideal location.
Health tourism in Mexico has become so widespread that some cities have begun to define themselves around their healthcare tourism. They boast some of the best hospitals and they are home to some of the top-notch doctors and specialists in North America. These cities typically have doctors who help train new American doctors, working in medical schools such as Stanford and UCLA. Although you may still need to search for the city that offers the specialty you need, health travel to Mexico is much easier to plan when you start your search with this list of locations.
The Evolution of the 'Medical City'
Originally, medical cities arose because they were easily accessible for American tourists who would drive across the border. But as the benefits of healthcare in Mexico have become more well known, the number of men and women flying to hospitals south of the border, rather than driving increased. While the original cities maintained their status as hotspots for healthcare, new ones also began to emerge. Today, Monterey, Tijuana, Juarez, Mexico City, Mexicali, and Guadalajara are all popular destinations, hosting elite hospitals with skilled surgeons and highly trained staff. And, following in footsteps of Brazil, resort cities such as Cancun and Puerto Vallarta are rapidly becoming favored destinations for quality, affordable elective procedures such as cosmetic surgery and bariatric surgery.
Today's destination is a more highly developed version of the original cities that first made health vacations in Mexican locales so economically efficient. They feature state-of-the-art hospitals, skilled surgeons and dentists that are only a short drive or flight away from the U.S., and feature hotels and other amenities that are useful for medical travelers. Some are also close to vacation hotspots, allowing patients who choose medical travel to Mexico to incorporate a real vacation.
Patients Save with Medical Travel to Mexico
Whether patients drive or fly, they flock to these cities for two simple reasons: savings and quality of care. The typical surgical procedure can be performed there for one-third of the typical cost in an American facility, and when the patient chooses the right location, a doctor with all the skill and experience of any American physician will perform the procedure. In fact, in many cases patients who take advantage of Mexican healthcare report better service and care than they would have expected from an American doctor. Doctors are able to be more patient focused than in the U.S. because healthcare is truly about health, not about meeting the demands of big insurance companies.
Lower Overhead Lowers Patient Costs
One of the key factors that help make health travel to Mexico so efficient is the lower cost of living nationwide. Compared to the U.S., Mexican facilities pay less for everything. From utilities to equipment to salary, the cost of living is lower, which means that the baseline cost of any procedure will be lower as well. The hospital staff wages are lower, as is the cost of state-of-the-art technology and equipment, allowing for the same standards of care and service at a much lower cost to the patient.
American Insurance Doesn't Control Healthcare South Of The Border
In the U.S., large insurance companies have a lot of control over hospitals and doctors alike. By deciding which facilities are 'in network' and which aren't, large insurance companies can dictate whether a doctor or hospital loses thousands of patients. Because of this leverage, doctors and hospitals are very eager to please these large companies, who rarely have the best interests of the patients themselves at heart.
In contrast, Mexican hospitals are completely outside the reach of big American insurance companies (though ironically, many insurance companies are beginning to see medical travel as a solution for providing lower cost policies to U.S. members). Medical travel to Mexico allows American patients to freely select the hospital of their choice, based purely on recommendations and strengths of the individual hospital. The benefits of a free market system come into play, and prices are set fairly, rather than dictated arbitrarily by a big corporation. The costs are determined based on what is reasonable to pay, and patients are charged accordingly. Doctors don't have to worry about restrictions imposed by insurance, and can instead focus on caring for patients. These differences make medical travel to Mexico hospitals cost effective, and also provide quality and service that surpasses many American facilities.
