Traveling To Mexico For Weight Loss Surgery
Is It Safe To Travel To Mexico For Weight Loss Surgery?
Megan Kelly on the TODAY Show
Why do so many people travel to Mexico for Weight Loss Surgery?
Some people who choose to travel to Mexico for weight loss surgery do so because bariatric surgery is not covered by their insurance company. Many insurance providers have strict requirements and lengthy approval processes that patients find frustrating to navigate.
Other patients opt to circumvent insurance altogether and pay out of pocket to avoid these requirements and wait times. The "cheap price" in Mexico catches their eye, often advertised at 70-80% less than US prices. What these advertisements fail to emphasize is the vastly different regulatory environment and the potential for catastrophic complications that may not be covered by insurance upon return.
Medical tourism companies aggressively market these surgeries as being performed by "US-trained surgeons" in "state-of-the-art facilities," creating a false sense of security for vulnerable patients. These marketing tactics rarely mention the significant differences in accreditation standards, follow-up care limitations, or the difficulties in seeking legal recourse when something goes wrong.
US Standards vs. Standards Abroad
Mexico clinics do not have to adhere to the same guidelines as clinics and surgeons in the US. In the US, patients are protected by healthcare laws and practice standards.
Mexican law prohibits lawsuits. Yes, you read that correctly. Suing a physician for malpractice is never an option just south of the border because Mexican law does not allow for the same sorts of tort (personal injury) lawsuits that are common in the U.S.
Every year Dr. Brown cares for 5-8 patients with complications from bariatric surgery performed in Mexico. In some cases, the person performing the procedure was never medically trained. Others have had persons trained in dentistry performing their surgeries. We wish this was fiction, but it's not. These stories are tragic and heartbreaking for those involved.
Every one of these patients say the same thing: "I didn't think it would happen to me."