Medical Care in Costa Rica is Worth a Look See

You might have heard about it, or maybe not; but Costa Rica has great, new, modern hospitals and a health insurance system that is massively cheaper than the costs you'll face in the United States. CIMA is a private hospital that's just minutes from our Villa Real Eco Residential rental in Santa Ana, Costa Rica.

Now, it's a serious subject, and I'm no well healed, number cruncher sitting a big fancy Washington think tank, calculating and lamenting the rising health care and cost of living in Toledo vs. Miami. But I'll say this-- it's worth checking out the health care costs in Costa Rica if you are pricing your insurance and medical care for yourself or a family member, and trying to save on the cost of a deductibles and monthly payments that are beyond the pale.

You'll find that saving a lot of money for the same level of care is very doable in Costa Rica.

Here is the description of CIMA:

Consorcio Hospital Internacional, S.A de C.V. (CHI) was incorporated in 1992 with the vision of establishing, in Mexico as well as in Latin America, a premier private medical services provider. Consorcio Internacional Hospital is the Mexican affiliate of International Hospital Corporation, a company headquartered in Dallas, Texas. This consortium invests in, operates and markets hospitals, who work under the name of Centro Internacional de Medicina (CIMA).

In fact, a good chunk of visitors to Costa Rica are there on what's called "medical tourism", and it's not just folks hell bent for boob jobs, or Human Growth Hormone treatments. Nearly 25% of CIMA's patients are Gringos looking for standard care at affordable prices, like you and me. It includes retirees who want an affordable trips to doctors, dentists and pharmacies. It includes savvy tourists who paste on a medical check up, or trip to American trained nutritionists, or dermatologists, or dentists, onto their vacations in Costa Rica. It includes people who want root canals, or major dental work at deeply discounted rates.

What kind of savings can you expect?


For example, I had an ultrasound of a major organ for $60 dollars. In Chicago it would have been much much more. My doctor visits are $30 dollars. My doctor is American trained and teaches at an American Medical school. The wait is never more than 5 minutes for most anything, for anything from blood tests to other procedures. A friend of mine brought his father to San Jose for an operation on his prostate after checking into it in America and in Europe. His operation was a great success-- and he reports that the professionalism was fantastic and the cost savings were almost unbelievable.

And as for prevention, well, we all know it's worth a pound of cure, and a Costa Rican vacation with a "medical tour" pasted on is well worth the trip. Whether it's Diet and nutrition, dermatology, physical therapy, exercise programs, or active fitness type retreats, Costa Rica has it.

We are happy to offer referrals to the service providers in Costa Rica to clients and guests, or anyone looking for general information. Contact info@palmmgt.com for details.