About 20,000 Americans (and 5,000 more from other countries) travel to this little Latin American country annually because the great care is matched by terrific prices. In its 2009 report “Medical Tourism Consumers in Search of Value”, the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions reported cost savings average of between 30-70% of US prices

Costa Rica medical tourism has soared within the past few years as more and more people world-wide have taken advantage of fantastic medical care at equally fantastic prices.  Aesthetic surgery accounts for one of every six medical procedures for foreigners.  These patients find excellent Costa Rica medical care.

Costa Rica has six major private hospitals and 22 public hospitals and, of those, three have Joint Commission Accreditation: La Catolica, Clinica Biblica, and CIMA, all in or just outside of San Jose.  

It is no secret that American health care is the costliest in the world—by a long shot.  And, for the nearly 50 million Americans without health insurance, there is insult added to injury because hospitals charge uninsured patients much more for services than folks having good insurance.  This is where Costa Rica medical care comes in for thousands of suffering American tourists.  Why?  Because they can save up to 65% in Costa Rica for the identical services they would receive in the United States.

Not convinced?  For patients without health insurance, total knee replacement surgery in the U.S. can cost $35,000 or more.  Clinica Biblica charges less than $12,000. 

Internationally accredited medical hospitals and board certified doctors—many who have studied and trained in the United States at world renowned universities—charge about $3,200 for breast augmentation.  Lasik eye surgery that can run up to $5,000 in the States is less than $2,000.  For more and more women wanting plastic surgery, Costa Rica is the ticket.  Instead of paying $10,000 for a facelift, they hop a plane, pay $3,000 or less, recuperate in a tropical paradise on a Costa Rica vacation, and go home with money in their pocket. Indeed, with prices like these, medical care in Costa Rica is the answer to many patients’ dreams.

In addition to the three JCI accredited hospitals, there are three clinics accredited by the American Association for the Accreditation of Ambulatory Facilities.  They are UNIBE (Universidad de Iberoamerica) which offers ambulatory and surgical care; Sonrisa Por Todo (Smiles for Everybody) providing dental care; and Pino Plastic Surgery Clinic.

Last but not least, one of three medical tourists in Costa Rica take advantage of high quality dental care, ranging from implants to dental surgery.  Periodontal surgery is often only 20% as expensive in Costa Rica as in the States.

So, when the time comes for expensive medical or dental care, you can either choose to stay home and pay exorbitant bills or combine one of those great tropical Costa Rica vacations with quality medical and dental care and return home with money in your pocket.  Pura Vida!