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 Statistics from the World Health Organization's "The
World Health Report 1995" place Costa Rica third in life
expectancy in the world, sandwiched neatly behind Japan and
France and ahead of Great Britain and the United States; and
with a per capita income about one tenth that of the other
four. Certainly, some reasons for this can be found in the
Costa Rican less-than-frenetic lifestyle, the healthy, fresh,
non-preservative laden foods of the country, the tropical
climate--Costa Rica seems to be a healthy place to live. But
if one looks simply at the life issues, so are many other
places on the globe. Costa Rica is a healthy place to live
because its government continues a long-time commitment to
affordable access to one of the finest health care systems
in the world for each and every citizen. In a United Nations
study conducted in the 1980s, Costa Rica's medical system
was first in Latin America and ranked near the United States
and Canada among the 20 best in the world. Things are pretty
much the same today.
Costa Rica's lack of a standing army and its historical commitment
to the social and educational welfare of its citizens have
provided the foundation for a "highly developed medical
system, internationally speaking" asserted plastic surgeon
Dr. Arnoldo Fournier. He continued, "It's not the surgeons
who have provided this, but the entire history of our country
that gives us this advantage."
Dr.
Logino Soto Pacheco, Chief of Surgery at Hospital Mexico,
premier cardiac surgeon in Costa Rica and one of the foremost
in the world, claims that Costa Rica is unique in its world
position in health care. "I have studied every health
care system in the Americas, and I can assure you that nowhere
else can compare to what Costa Rica offers its citizens,"
he stated emphatically. Who would doubt these words from the
man who assembled the Costa Rican surgical team which performed
the first successful heart transplant in Latin America.
With a government-sponsored network of 29 hospitals and more
than 250 clinics throughout the country, the Caja Costarricense
de Seguro Social (CCSS) has primary responsibility for providing
low cost health services to the Costa Rican populace. Though
presently somewhat overburdened, like most of the Costa Rican
infrastructure, this system has worked well for Costa Ricans
for the past 50 or so years. Open not just to Ticos, the CCSS
provides affordable medical service to any foreign resident
or visitor. Foreigners living in Costa Rica can join the CCSS
by paying a small monthly fee--based on their income-- or
they can buy health insurance from the State monopoly Instituto
de Seguro Nacional (INS) valid with over 200 affiliated doctors,
hospitals, labs and pharmacies in the private sector.
Two well-known private hospitals, Clinica Biblica and Clinica
Catolica, where many CCSS doctors practice in the afternoons
and evenings, offer first-class, ultra-modern services. Affiliated
with U.S. hospitals, these two private providers have costs
somewhat higher than the public providers but still way below
anything found in the States.
Most Costa Rican doctors and dentists receive their basic
medical training in Costa Rica. From here, they travel far
and wide seeking specialized training from the finest teaching
hospitals in the world, often becoming certified in their
specialities in the countries where they receive their advanced
training. It is not uncommon to find a Costa Rican doctor
or dentist speaking several languages, all learned while pursuing
advanced degrees in foreign countries. Perhaps it is the CCSS
work or the varied travel and study that does it, but the
caring expressed by the doctors and dentists throughout the
country is noteworthy in its extreme.
New hospital under construction in Chontales
(near Ojochal).
In 1991, two economists from the University of Costa Rica
conducted a survey of visitors to this country. Their findings,
documented in the study, indicated that 14.25% of all visitors
came for the express purpose of receiving medical care of
some type. Over the years, Costa Rica has attracted those
in search of uplifting cosmetic surgery. People from around
the world arrive daily to partake of the healing waters in
over 100 thermal and mineral springs located here. Dental
work, from fillings to implants, is done routinely on people
from every corner of the world. Many people from Latin America
plan for their medical needs--from hip replacement to heart
valve replacement--to be taken care of by the well-trained
and skillful physicians in Costa Rica rather than in their
native countries. Clearly then, not only does Costa Rica offer
universal health care coverage to its citizens, but that same
high quality care is available for people from all over the
world.
Costa Rica has long been a selected destination for those
in search of the Fountain of Youth. Although The Fountain
of Youth has yet to be discovered, the talented plastic and
cosmetic surgeons of this country, many schooled and board-certified
in the United States and Europe, continue to provide the appearance
of such to hundreds of satisfied, younger looking, people.
Of the "medical tourists" documented in the UCR
study previously mentioned, a large percentage came for cosmetic
surgery (dental and cardiovascular procedures were a close
second). Doctor Carlos A. Centeno, well-known Costa Rican
cosmetic surgeon, indicates that the number of medical tourists
increases each year. Dr. Roberto Murillo, another established
surgeon, related that each of the twenty-five to thirty registered
plastic surgeons in Costa Rica averages seven to eight medical
tourists daily.
The full range of cosmetic and reconstructive surgery is
available here in several modern clinics. With the recent
addition of contemporary laser technology the ability of Costa
Rica's plastic and cosmetic surgeons to provide world-class
services has been enhanced. Procedures routinely offered by
plastic surgeons in Costa Rica include total and partial face
lifts or reconstruction; tummy tucks; breast reduction, augmentation
and reconstruction; liposuction; liposculpture; electrolysis
for the permanent depilation of unwanted hair; removal of
acne scars and other skin irregularities; and many other procedures
to counteract aging, or enhance beauty. What nature has wrought,
Costa Rican plastic surgeons are improving.
And they can improve nature's handiwork at a cost more affordable
than in many other countries. For example, facial cosmetic
surgery (face lift), according to Dr. Centeno the most commonly
performed procedure here, can cost from $6,000 to $12,000
in the United States. Comparable surgery in Costa Rica will
cost between $3,000 and $4,000 including clinic stay, medicines,
nursing care and the surgery. Most minor procedures are done
on an ambulatory-care basis requiring no hospitalization.
Major procedures, such as some breast surgeries and "tummy
tucks," can require overnight hospitalizations with the
cost of the room included in the "package."
"Prices are sometimes 50% lower than in the United States,"
stated a staff person at Clinica de Cirugia Estetica, S.A.,
"but each case is different and prices are quoted on
an individual basis after consultation with the surgeon."
Even though each case is different, Dr. Murillo suggests that
many surgeries are 60% to 70% less expensive here than in
the United States.
Non-elective reconstructive surgery required as a result of
an accident or illness leaving a patient disfigured is performed
as well and as skillfully. Should this type of surgery be
necessary, it is advisable that a patient check with his or
her private physician and insurance carrier at home for coordination
and financing.
From simple fillings to complicated multiple implants and
periodontal work, Costa Rican dentists are as qualified and
skilled as any to be found. The orthodontists have their own
university programs here and the periodontists hone their
skills at various teaching universities around the world.
Foreign patients seeking periodontal work and dental implants
arrive in Costa Rica in greater numbers monthly. There is
a group of about 20 dental specialists--periodontists, oral
surgeons, root canal specialists, prosthedontists and orthodontists--working
together to provide high quality, specialized dental care
to Ticos and foreigners alike. Cost per implant is between
$750 and $850. Laboratory work here is much cheaper, but the
materials used are all FDA-approved and imported from the
States.
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