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Dr. Michaels' Blog

Medical Tourism; Where can I get cheap, safe plastic surgery?

Medical Tourism; Where should I go to get cheap, safe Plastic Surgery?

 

Most people who leave the USA for cosmetic surgery do it to save money. Many of these foreign facilities are accredited by US agencies, and many of their doctors are trained in the US. Of course there are still safety issues like the increased risk of post-operative blood clots forming and embolizing to your lungs while seated on long flights. Or, the difficult follow up if you have a complication thousands of miles from your surgeon. Or, that a malpractice suit is probably impossible if you have a bad outcome. But I say, hey, let’s look at this supposed cost savings.

A typical abdominoplasty or tummy tuck costs 5000.00 US dollars with Dr. Lev, a Costa Rican plastic surgeon,( http://costaricanplasticsurgery.com/general-price_list_11lucia.html) and includes anesthesia, OR fees and surgeon’s fees. A typical round trip ticket from Boston to Costa Rica is 1200.00. Then there’s hotel and food for the time you’re in Latin America; let’s guess 1000.00 for a 5 day stay. That’s a total of 7200.00 US dollars.

Our fee for a tummy tuck at the Berkshire Cosmetic & Reconstructive Surgery Center is 6775.00. That’s 425.00 less than Costa Rica! That’s in America. That’s at an AAAASF accredited fully licensed ambulatory surgery center. That’s with board certified ASPS member plastic surgeons.  Why would you even consider going abroad for cosmetic surgery?