Americans Saving Money By Getting Dental Work In Mexico

Americans already save money by purchasing prescription drugs from Canada and getting plastic surgery in South America. Now they’re crossing over to Mexican border towns for high-quality dentistry, which can cost over 60% less than comparable work in the U.S. Reuters notes that “a dental crown in the United States costs upward of $600 per tooth, compared to $190 or less in Mexico.”

“We’ve gone from a handful of patients when we started 2-1/2 years ago to 150 new patients a month,” said Joe Andel, an American who owns the Rio Dental clinic in Ciudad Juarez with his Mexican dentist wife, Jessica.

Rio Dental, which uses U.S. labs to make its crowns, picks patients up at the airport in El Paso, Texas, across the border and has treated people from as far away as Alaska and Hawaii.

“The Internet makes this possible. It allows patients to find us and research us and shows we can do dental work of equal or superior quality to the United States,” Andel said.

“Americans go to Mexico for a cheaper perfect smile” [Reuters]

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Comments

  1. Monoplex says:

    An ice skate blade and a rock would just break your tooth in half. You’d be unlikely to feel any better.

    Dental schools can be great for those who have the time.

  2. arch05 says:

    @Jaguares: BAN USER LOCK THREAD.
    I’ll eat shit & die as soon as you STFU and start speaking to things you actually know about. Frat-boy douchery? Are you kidding? That’s the most hilarious thing yet on this thread, and that’s saying alot.

    Not only frat boys and their sorostitutes go on spring break.

    I’m sorry if you couldn’t get laid in college & now have a negative view of those more successful than you, but it’s not my problem BRAH.

  3. Monoplex says:

    Let’s not forget the critical and often neglected step of proper etching of the tooth to ensure micromechanical attachment. Ahem.

  4. gibbersome says:

    @omfpe:
    [i]
    “Want a measure of education? In December 2006, under 15% of US students failed the 2nd year national boards. 79% of students at unaccredited (read – foreign) schools failed.
    In the computerized version that year, it was 10% vs 42%.
    This year, it was 5% vs 38%. And these are the people from foreign schools who are hoping to come to the US and practice. What about the people who go to those schools and stay in the area?

    The bottom line is that their education is nowhere near what ours is.”[/i]

    The reason why they fail is because the US education boards test material presented in a very different way that they’re used to. Furthermore, alot of them have the language barrier. Does that mean that their education is inferior? No, how good a doctor you become mostly depends on the student.

    I had fillings done abroad for a sixth of the cost and the dentist did a much better job than the one in the US did. There are good and bad doctors everywhere, thats why getting recommendations from knowledgeable sources is important.

    And being a medical student who’s visited and interacted with foreign medical graduates, I must say that the best doctors in the world come from some of the most unexpected places. I hold the Cuban medical education system in very high regard because students there are taught to do more with a lot less than American students.

  5. Monoplex says:

    @gibbersome: Lets assume clinical language skills are a secondary consideration. Dental boards have an awful lot of clinical involved; I’d be curious what the washout rate is for that.

    I’m curious as to what brings you to the conclusion that the foreign doctor did a better job than The U.S. one did? I do not mean this in the context of asking you to defend your opinion but rather I’m curious as what criteria you used to reach it.

  6. increaser says:

    I’ve had work done in Mexico with no problems. Free inspection, and a week later a $25 filling. I haven’t had any major work done, though I know many others who have and I’ve heard of no problems.

  7. lanabala says:

    I’ve had dental work in Mexico and I find myself very pleased. I didn’t trust going to the border, but I found Cancun Cosmetic Dentistry and believe me it is one of the best choices ever made. Cancun is awesome as well.