Would you go to Mexico for a bypass? a liver transplant? maybe not.
Besides, the US has an insane law that says that hospitals must throw away the bill for those who say they can’t pay. (Which explains why bills are insanely high in the USA.)
“the US has an insane law that says that hospitals must throw away the bill for those who say they can’t pay.”
Incorrect.
The federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) requires hospitals that participate in Medicare to provide emergency care regardless of patient ability to pay.
The hospital normally tries to bill and collect payment. In the one case I know of personally, bill collectors called the patient daily.
State garnishment laws protect low income families from garnishment.
Most of these protected families qualify for Medicaid. The bills will get paid by Medicaid if the hospital walks the family through the Medicaid application process. This isn’t always done because the application processing costs may exceed the medical care facility provision costs.
Medical bills are rarely thrown away by hospitals. Instead, they are sold off to bill collection companies.