Posted on 11/15/2019 7:22:48 PM PST by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
LOS ALGODONES, Mexico ― The billboards that line the stretch of California’s Interstate 8 headed toward Los Algodones make it clear travelers are not on their way to a typical tourism destination.
The signs that beckon Americans as they head west toward Andrade, California’s narrow border crossing, aren’t for resorts or beaches but for dental clinics offering bridges and root canals at half what they cost in the United States. Dental care has become big business here over the last two decades, so much so that American visitors have taken to calling it “Molar City.” An estimated 600 dentists operate out of hundreds of clinics that fill the 1-square-mile town, which is home to fewer than 5,000 permanent residents.
When HuffPost visited in October, the busy season for dental tourism was just beginning. Americans, mostly retirees, were already walking the maze of streets, visiting gift shops for local handicrafts and pharmacies for low-cost prescription drugs.
Los Algodones is the northernmost town in Baja California and in Mexico itself, bordered by California to the north and by Arizona to the east. It’s just a 14-mile drive from the airport in Yuma, Arizona.
The clinics are the main reason Americans and, to a lesser extent, Canadians, travel to this village. There’s not much else here. The few restaurants in town close early, and the nightlife consists of two strip clubs. The residents are poor, and these dental clinics aren’t for them. Although the medical tourism boom has provided jobs to many area residents, others hustle as jaladores for tips from clinics and other businesses for luring pedestrians to them.
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
A friend had dental work done at half the cost. The office was more modern than that of his US dentist.
One possible place to go when your local professional wants to ream you financially for the crime of wanting to chew solid food again.
PING!
I’d rather go to Hungary. They are well-renowned for dentistry. And safer too.
I wonder if similar setups could be put on Indian reservation land, so that one wouldn’t have to travel to Mexico or Costa Rica.
Ok to get your teeth cleaned there but don’t drink the water.
Go to your local major dental university. Saves time & travel. At least 50% of the cost of private dental services.
More expensive travel to destination.
I am wearing glasses I bought there. For the price of one pair of glasses and frames here, I can fly to Vegas, rent a car, spend a week in Yuma, get an eye exam and TWO pair of glasses and frames in Algodones, fly home and still have $100 left over.
Oh, and the glasses are ready next day. That same afternoon if you get an early morning appointment.
Your safety outweighs the cost Jane, and that cost is negligible. I wouldn’t go to Mexico if you paid me to. It is probably the most crime-ridden and corrupt nation in the Western Hemisphere.
I haven’t been to Mexico in DECADES!! And, don’t plan on going there any time soon.
Just pointing out a fact, for MOST Americans or retirees....regarding the travel cost.
Can you not fly to a town closer to Mexico, than Vegas? Seems like a long drive.
One possible place to go when your local professional wants to ream you financially ...
I hope it works out better than a guy I worked with.
He did the ‘free’ Mexican vacation and hair transplant plan.
He repeated the trip twice, it kept falling out?
Still bald.
They can open the Mexican version of the Villages. The Village People can be the city council.
I think that’s a very good idea. It’s malpractice that adds the cost.
Our dentist says a lot of his business is repairing the damage done in Mexico. Some clinics there are good, many are just seasonal "pop ups". We watch the ads change on the billboards on I-8 quite often as the businesses change. A popular one this year is "Alberta Dental". Guess who they are catering to?
Of course the cost of malpractice insurance is low there. snowbirds can't win any settlements and have to go 2,000 miles home after those glorious two weeks in the desert southwest, with ill fitting dentures, leaky crowns and no recourse.
I’m sure I’m missing something.
Do many people not have dental insurance, so they are looking at paying a lot of money for dental care? Does dental insurance not cover a lot of procedures?
Do many people have complicated dental needs? I must say, in my adult life, I’ve never needed root canals or crowns or any major work, so my view is skewed I admit. And I’ve always had dental insurance through work.
And having had dental insurance, I must admit, I haven’t paid much attention to the “list price” of various dental procedures, since I haven’t needed them.
Your dentist on this side of the border has to pay much higher wages to his/her hired help. Costs of materials, office rent, malpractice insurance, etc. are substantially higher in America than in Mexico. The overhead “costs of doing business” are far higher here, so it’s not surprising Mexican dentists can charge a lot less and still make money.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.