Healthcare in Mexico

suferdude wrote:

I pay cash, health care In mx is cheep compared to US. Don't need health ins.

About how much are you paying per year. if you bother to keep track, that i?.  What is the maximum one-time expense you could cover?

$3,000       54,000 pesos
$6,000     108.000 pesos
$12,000  215,000 pesos

These are not unheard charges for minor surgery to serious accidents/illnesses.

I have been in two hospitals here in Xalapa. One a Seguro Popular for a kidney infection. My landlord and neighbor drove me over to the emergency room where I was treated quickly and interviewed. In public hospitals, you need someone there with you to go to the nearest pharmacia to purchase the necessary medications. The nurse will give you companero the prescription. Also to pay the bill on discharge. You don't leave the hospital (they have guards) until the bill is paid. Four days in the hospital, medicine, emergency room, tests, etc ran 12,000 pesos. A few years earlier, I had an MRI at the same hospital for 1,800 pesos. The other hospital was a very new, private hospital. There for a possible stent insertion. over night 38,000 for the hospital and 25,000 for the doctors. The treatment room for angioplasty was state of the art. Treatment and staff similar to US hospitals.

I live across for a Centro de Salud and have used their services for BP checks, flu symptoms, penicillin shots. This was free or a few pesos.

My heart doctor has his office a block from where I live and charges 1,000 pesos a visit. I see him every four months. My eye doctor's office is two blocks away. I see her every six to twelve months as I'm nearing the point for cataract surgery. Last estimate is 15,000 per eye.

Absolutely right, Gudgrief.....I have U.S. dental insurance and it was cheaper for me to travel to Juarez and get my crown fixed than my co-pay in the U.S.  My dentist did a great job and they even submitted a claim for me on my U.S. dental insurance and I received something like $60 back!  AMAZING.

There are affordable and comprehensive international health insurance plans available for expats from Lloyd´s of London backed health insurance companies.

Annual premiums start at $100 to $200 a month (premiums are based on age and sex).

Pre-existing conditions are evaluated before you sign the dotted line, so you know ahead of time what limitations may apply and whether you want to accept the terms or not.

***

Thanks,
Melanie

patryka wrote:

Absolutely right, Gudgrief.....I have U.S. dental insurance and it was cheaper for me to travel to Juarez and get my crown fixed than my co-pay in the U.S.  My dentist did a great job and they even submitted a claim for me on my U.S. dental insurance and I received something like $60 back!  AMAZING.

Just today, a local dentist removed a 5 yr old filling from tooth that had begun to decay from the side because there wasn't enough room to pass dental floss between.  The lack of space may have been due to a crown done by another Mexican dentist in another city.  This dentist is slowish, methodical and very careful.  After drilling out the new decay he put in a temporary filling and instructed me to call him on Thursday if the pain I was experiencing doesn't return to get a permanent filling.  Call him immediately if pain returns and we'll see about root canal or ...

A bit over an hour's work cost me 250 pesos, less than $15.00.

Two points.
Yes, prices are much cheaper than in the US but all you have to go on is word of mouth.
Sometimes that word of mouth gets you to a dentist that isn't as detail oriented as should be.

I'll report back with a progress update.

I agree that healthcare being so affordable we have just paid out of pocket. Our concern is if something major like cancer, or major surgery is needed, so that is what we are trying to get covered for, more so than every day care.

That's a difficult one.
Friends have had hernia, appendix and gynecological surgery in private hospitals and one in an IMSS hospital.  No qualms about quality of care or overall treatment.

I went to a Seguro Popular emergency room.  Actually it was the General Hospital for Zacatecas.  I mistakenly went through the door where the ambulances bring the patients in on the gurneys.  a young doctor there asked me what the problem was and when he understood showed me how to get to the reception area to sign in.  I got the impression that if I appeared to have a life threatening problem, I'd get immediate attention or go to the head of the line.

At reception, I was pretty forceful about making it clear that my condition could turn serious.  They probably didn't believe me.  In any case, I waited an hour before I got to see a doctor.   He had blood drawn, I gave a urine sample and he had an EKG done.  It took about 10 min before a tech rolled the EKG machine in.  By the time the EKG was done, the lab results were back.  The doctor looked the results over and gave me a couple of prescriptions and said to come back in 2 weeks for follow up.  Later on I saw a doctor in the US who agreed with everything the Mexican doctor had done.  He ordered an echo cardiogram and a head CT to rule out coronary problems and see if there was anything like a mini stroke.

I was well satisfied with my treatment in the Mexican hospital.  But I may have gotten a clearer message across in English to the American doctor than to the Mexican doctor in Spanish.

Would like your opinion.  It's axiomatic that anyone over 65 is going to have some pre-existing condition. What I'm finding is that IMSS won't accept, but Seguro Popular will not underwrite on the basis of age or pre-existing .  So with a temporary resident visa (I'm 74), would my best bet be your solution: keep paying Medicare A/B, hold on to my supplement and apply for Seguro Popular?  D

seoulguy wrote:

Would like your opinion.  It's axiomatic that anyone over 65 is going to have some pre-existing condition. What I'm finding is that IMSS won't accept, but Seguro Popular will not underwrite on the basis of age or pre-existing .  So with a temporary resident visa (I'm 74), would my best bet be your solution: keep paying Medicare A/B, hold on to my supplement and apply for Seguro Popular?  D

I have been with Seguro Popular for 7 years and though I have 3 pre-existing conditions, the question never came up.  Their service is limited to a specific list of conditions and treatments but the list is quite comprehensive.  the same goes for meds.  the supply what they feel they can fit within budget.

I have a place in McAllen, TX so I keep my A & B & D plus a supplement F because it covers emergency treatment while traveling.  I accessed it once after a 4 day hospital stay for a weird pneumonia.  The bill came to almost $5,000 and the insurance paid 80% less $250.  Being 74 also, I have run into some things in the last couple of years that convinced me to see docs in McAllen on a regular basis up to aroubnd 6 tiomes a year on the theory that working in English is worth the extra cost.  In the last couple of years I used Seguro Popular for blood work but my current Internist and Cardiologist are OK with doing the blood work when I'm there and having their offices contact me with additional instructions later if necessary.