Millions of Americans Flood Into Mexico for Health Care -- the Human Caravan You Haven't Heard About

[mucifer]

The Trump administration is trying to convey panic that there’s an immediate crisis on the southern border, pointing to caravans of desperate people who have traveled thousands of miles.

It’s true that Latin and Central Americans are coming to the US fleeing violence and poverty, much of it caused by destructive US trade policy over the course of decades. But there’s another massive “border crossing” phenomenon afoot — and Trump has not said a word about it. We’re talking about thousands of US citizens crossing the border each day in search of affordable health care.

At just one checkpoint in Yuma, Arizona, up to 6,000 Americans cross the border every day and enter the bustling Mexican town of Los Algodones, seeking heath care.

Unlike the Trump administration that seeks to build a wall between the countries, Los Algodones welcomes Americans seeking dental care with open arms.

https://truthout.org/articles/millions-of-americans-flood-into-mexico-for-health-care/

[dalton99a]

1. "74 million people in the US have no dental insurance"

The statistics are jarring. Approximately 74 million people in the US have no dental insurance, according to the National Association of Dental Plans. To put those numbers into perspective, that’s nearly a quarter of the population, or roughly twice the number that lacks health insurance overall.

But the problem is much larger than people lacking dental insurance. Dental insurance is not really insurance. It’s nothing like health or auto insurance, for example.

Most dental plans don’t cover much at all beyond regular check-ups, cleaning, X-rays and fillings. Beyond that, patients are expected to fork over much of the cost of large but common procedures like crowns, root canals and implants. Dental plans also generally pay a maximum of $1,500 annually, a number that’s hardly changed in 50 years. And $1,500 doesn’t go far when you consider the cost of major dental work. The cost of a single crown can be as much as $2,000 and the cost of an implant can run $5,000 a tooth. It’s not uncommon for seniors to need a set of four implants and several crowns, so you can see the costs can quickly get prohibitive.

One of the reasons dental care is so expensive in the United States is insurance. “The number one most complicated aspect of running a dental office, bar none, is dealing with dental insurance. You wouldn’t believe how long it takes to get through to a rep, make sure the patient does have benefits, calculate a copay,” dentist Dr. M told CBS News.

[pangaia]

16. I'm one of those 74 million.

I have Medicare with an Advantage Plan. And it covers only check ups, cleanings.. I don;t think even fillings..

Why is it that there basically is NO dental ins?


Gotta be the 'bottom line."

[Turbineguy]

2. My RW brother-in-law

goes there for dental work.

[watoos]

3. I have Medicare and a secondary insurance with a high deductible.

I retired in 2010 and since then I have spent around $11,000 on dental care. One root canal cost $1,100.00.

Medicare for all still wouldn't give us 100% health coverage and we can't even get that. Plus, Medicare isn't free, it has premiums that are deducted from SS and has a small deductible.

[pangaia]

17. No insurance is "free."

[Hermit-The-Prog]

23. health insurance is overhead

Health care is a universal need, so it should not be handled via insurance. It should be handled as national defense is handled -- a burden shared by all taxpayers.

Under the system we have, we pay for every medical procedure that is performed plus we pay for a huge "industry" whose purpose is to extract payments and deny coverage. It's time to remove the exorbitant overhead.

[pangaia]

25. With you on that.

[treestar]

4. The wall is also intended to keep us in

Or could be used that way.

[blue-wave]

5. Exactly

[aggiesal]

11. The wall will be used to ...

keep us from seeing what we've created.

I used to say that about the wealthy, living in their mansions, behind 10 foot walls;
they don't want to see what they've created.

[cannabis_flower]

6. If you know an immigrant

Last edited Thu Jan 24, 2019, 11:54 AM - Edit history (1)

You can probably find cheaper dental care here, it's just not by a dentist licensed in the US.

My husband knocked 2 teeth out in a bicycle accident and get two implants for $700 by a guy who was a dentist when he lived in El Salvador. I needed periodontal scaling ($80 per quadrant when I had insurance). He charged me $125 to do all 4 quadrants.

[ancianita]

7. Not to mention the thousands who cross the New Mexico border at Puerto Palomas and Antelope Wells.

I have friends there who get dental work done al otro lado. (on the other side)

[nolabear]

8. Not disputing but those cars look like they're from the 90s.

Interesting bunch of vehicles anyway but I don’t see a modern one among them.

[Ferrets are Cool]

14. Yeah, it looks like they pulled a "stock" photo for this story. nt

[pangaia]

18. Of course they did..

[bullwinkle428]

19. I see a Ford Escape and a Prius in the foreground that are probably

no more than 3-4 years old, so I can't imagine the photo is that old.

[Gidney N Cloyd]

20. Looks like a 2014-ish Ford Escape in the lower left.

Link for comparison (might have to copy and paste into an address field):
&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.keithpiersontoyota.com%2Fused-Jacksonville-2014-Ford-Escape-SE-1FMCU0G90EUB00522&docid=0YoeskPOXa7QWM&tbnid=phCfrA5_A581XM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjhj7T28IbgAhUCD60KHaPUB9wQMwhzKAgwCA..i&w=640&h=480&bih=474&biw=1094&q=ford%20escape%202014&ved=0ahUKEwjhj7T28IbgAhUCD60KHaPUB9wQMwhzKAgwCA&iact=mrc&uact=8

[duforsure]

9. After trump claimed we'd have better health care, and at lower prices,

And more covered, and affordable prescription drug prices, and he once again did the opposite. When he signed the gop's and his tax scam bill giving the wealthy trillions , he robbed millions of health care. Then they reduced almost 2 trillion from Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security after claiming he wouldn't touch them. trump and the gop are liars , and have done the opposite of their claims, just like right before the Mid Terms when he said they were working on Middle class tax cuts, and again he lied. He and the gop also lied about existing conditions being covered, claiming they were for it , when actually they were against them being covered. And people still trust these people in our government? Why , they're liars and thieves. No wonder more people are going to Mexico for their health care now, because trump and the gop have failed the American people , and lied to us. .

[olegramps]

13. And million who voted for him can't afford medical and especially dental care.

It is hard to fell too damn sorry for them.

[aggiesal]

10. Hummm, people crossing borders to get affordable health care. Reminds me of a Senator, hmmm, ...

But there’s another massive “border crossing” phenomenon afoot — and Trump has not said a word about it. We’re talking about thousands of US citizens crossing the border each day in search of affordable health care.

Just ask Senator Rand Paul.

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/15/politics/rand-paul-canada-surgery/

[Aristus]

12. Unfortunately, not all of it is evidence-based allopathic medicine.

My mother-in-law went there for 'treatment' of her leukemia. The treatment consisted of things like coffee enemas and other wackadoodle protocols that did nothing to ameliorate her condition, and helped to delay actual scientific treatment. I'm convinced her death could have been pushed back by a couple of years if she had gone to medical professionals first, rather than quacks.

[Grammy23]

15. Just think of the vast numbers of Americans who desperately need dental care

who will never be able to get to the border towns for help. It is one thing to be a retired person living your life on the road in your RV or camper and another thing entirely to live in mid-America working at a minimum wage (or barely above) job with no hope of ever amassing enough money to get yourself and family to a border town for dental care. People who live in states that are next to the Mexican border might put together enough for a quick trip to get their teeth examined and repaired but there are millions of others who just can’t do that. Our system is broken and many citizens are paying a hefty price that leaves them with painful, diseased teeth and negative impacts on their overall health.

With evidence mounting that our dental health is directly connected to our overall health picture, it is imperative that we overhaul the entire way we insure citizens for health care. Why should dental, vision and hearing be separated from our basic health insurances? Why is it set up that way? We should demand answers AND changes so our entire health is maintained by one insurance.

[elmac]

21. and Canada, and Asia, and....... nt

[progressoid]

28. I have a cousin who went to some eastern European country for dental work.

He turned it into a vacation and still saved money.

[uppityperson]

22. I've gone to Mexico for dental care at a fraction of the cost, airfare included

[Demovictory9]

24. yep. Tijuana. Lots of people go there for medical care. Many of the doctors work on both side of

border.

[lapfog_1]

26. When I lived near Benson, AZ

I went to Naco for dental work all the time.. and over the counter meds too (that require prescriptions here)

Saved a ton of money... the dentists were top rate.

[sheshe2]

27. The article is from Truth Out.

I will take it with a grain of salt.

William Pitt is an Op Ed there. He was a member here. He called Obama a POSUCS here for F**king up his wife's crucial medicine when in fact it was his fault for not checking his insurance plan after moving from MA to NH. Most here are aware of his humungous thread saying a huge FU to Obama and calling him a Piece of Shit Used Car Salesman.

[LeftInTX]

29. I agree

I know people who go to Mexico for dental. They are from the Rio Grande Valley. You either got to live down there or stay down there if you are having a crown put in. Their cousin stayed with with them for a few weeks while she had dental work done.

I live 150 miles from the border. While, I could go there for routine cleanings and fillings, (which don't cost much here anyway) I would have to move down there for a few weeks if I needed a root canal.

[grantcart]

30. I stopped reading when they got the geography wrong

1) There is no port of entry in Yuma, it is in San Luis which is 10 miles south of Yuma.

2) The port of entry known as Los Algadones is not only not in Yuma but is not in Arizona but several miles to the west in California.

3) Algadones is a 2 lane port of entry ( most Americans just park on the American side and walk a couple of blocks to their dentist or optometrist), so the picture is not of Algadones.

It's not so much as Truth Out as it is Truth hit or miss.