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Emergency Medical Insurance


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Hi all!

Temp. resident here in Mexico, trying to figure out what to do about emergency medical insurance.

I used to buy travel insurance, but now I wonder if I'd better go with a national provider (VUMI, etc.)? It seems a lot more expensive, but I'm not sure that, living here, I would even be eligible for travel insurance still.

What do you do?

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8 hours ago, orizababoy23 said:

As far as out of pocket, I understand that a lot of medical services in Mexico can be on the cheap side, but what about emergecy surgery, for example? An unforeseen accident that lands you in a hospital that charges you an obscene amount of money? Should I not be worried about that?

Be prepared for it.  If you don't have cash reserves for medical emergencies you can try to get private insurance if you qualify; many companies reject or financially penalize those with pre-existing conditions. 

Joining the MX public health system may be an option, if temporary residents qualify (I don't know if they do).  

Most travel insurance plans have limitations on the time you are outside of your 'home' country and most are very explicit in stating their coverage is not meant for expats.  

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Many people might not aware the the majority of surgeons working in IMSS are in private practice as well. Some of the most respected surgeons in Guadalajara work 4 hours a day with IMSS and then 4 hours in their private practice. That way they will receive a pension from IMSS.

I have family members  had major surgery with IMSS. One surgeon actually had the follow up visits at her private office because she knew that it was very close to where my brother in law lives. 

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7 minutes ago, AndyPanda said:

As I understand it, Federal law states that no doctors can have a practice until/unless they work for IMSS.

Not exactly.  After you graduate from med school you need to donate one year of service to the government. Could be a local clinic, INSABI, IMSS, etc. Only after that can you practice. My nephew spent a year in a very small town as the only doctor. His clinic was one room with a bathroom and a closet for medicine,  and he lived in a house furnished by the town. 

That requirement also applies to foreign students who graduate in Mexico (there are many).  

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21 minutes ago, AndyPanda said:

Nope, never heard that.

I would kindly suggest that your knowledge of this requirement is incomplete. You need to hear a bit more.

As I stated my nephew served in a small village his obligatory year. The clinic had no connection to IMSS in any way. A couple of years ago there was a young female doctor from the USA serving with the Cruz Roja in Chapala for her obligatory year..Also no connection to IMSS. In the 70's I visited a doctor in Ajijic who was from the USA working a clinic in Ajijic that was in no way a part of the IMSS.

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