According to Fox Business, a fidelity study released last year estimates that a healthy, 65-year-old couple will need $275,000 to cover their healthcare costs in retirement—and that doesn’t include the cost of over-the-counter medications, dental care, or long-term care.
But according to a recent survey, there are places overseas where retirees can enjoy excellent-quality healthcare—as good, if not better, as what they can expect in the US for pennies on the dollar.
International Living.com recently compared and contrasted the benefits of life in the top 24 countries around the world they recommend for an overseas retirement.
“In addition to a survey of specific prices for a range of treatments, medications, and insurance, we also take into account the ease with which expats can access care. In the communities we recommend in all the nations that top our list, expats can find excellent healthcare at prices as low as 50% or less of what they’d expect to pay at home in the United States,” says International Living’s Executive Editor, Jennifer Stevens.
Stevens discussed with Fox Business the top 5 countries International Living recommends for retirees when it comes to healthcare overseas – and why:
MEXICO
In Mexico, every medium to large city has at least one first-rate hospital. Most doctors and dentists in Mexico received at least part of their training in the U.S., so they’re familiar with the care expats expect and they speak English. International Living’s Mexico Editor, Glynna Prentice, says, “In Mexico, I have access to two affordable healthcare systems: public and private. In Mexico’s private healthcare system, costs—pretty much across the board—run 25% to 50% of U.S. costs for comparable services. And as a legal resident in Mexico, I also have access to Mexico’s public healthcare system, which runs most people around $300 to $400 or so a year—or less,” says Prentice, one of an estimated 1 million Americans now living in Mexico.
Most common name-brand prescription drugs are available in Mexico—at 25% to 50% less than what they cost north of the border and generics are available for many off-patent drugs as well. Many doctors routinely make house-calls and phone you to inquire about your health, after treatment. In fact, many pharmacy chains provide a free physician whose office is attached to the pharmacy. Simply walk in and pay nothing for a consultation. And most medications do not require a prescription.
COLOMBIA
The World Health Organization (WHO) ranks Colombia’s healthcare system as 22 out of the 191 countries they review. (That is better than Canada at 30 and the U.S. at 37.) The care is top notch and the price is a small fraction of what it would add up to in the U.S. Co-pays for the public health plan are based on a three-tiered system—the mid-range price is about $3—and apply to laboratory tests, x-rays, and prescription medications. Private health insurance is an option for people under the age of 60 as a supplemental plan to the EPS public coverage. But many expats simply choose to pay for care out-of-pocket. Prices for procedures, office visits, and medications are much lower than in the U.S. For example, a one-hour consultation with a specialist costs about $50.
By Casey Dowd for Fox Business
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Source: Fox Business
