Medical Tourism: My Solution To Expensive Healthcare In The United States

We flew to Paris, France for a week for our son’s heart scan. The whole trip was still cheaper than the insured scan in the United States. Both our babies were born in France. Our youngest had open-heart surgery and required heart scans frequently, which cost about $180.

A year later, we were living in the United States. Before our first appointment, I received an email estimate. “$3600?!?!?!” I yelled.

Suddenly, I had an idea. I contacted our cardiologist in France. “This might sound crazy… but can I fly back to Paris and pay the 170 euros out of pocket?” I asked.
"Oui, madame." I drew up a rough budget and presented it to my husband.

“Flight, hotel, food, and entertainment- it’s all less than the price of the scan here in the US,” I said.

My husband couldn’t come, but my mom agreed. Our American cardiologist was on board with the plan.

On March 5th, we boarded the flight. An email pinged my phone.

“A new estimate,” I read out loud. “Looks like the scan now costs $3700, not $3600.”

I rolled my eyes, then began dreaming of my next croissant, just a mere 8-hour plane ride away.

Rachel Ogilby is a doctorate prepared nurse who lives in Lakewood with her family. She lived in Paris for three years, where she experienced the healthcare system extensively. Rachel had two babies during their time there, and their youngest child had open heart surgery at age 6 months.