Save Money by Using a Nursing Home in a Foreign Country

I've written about how people are saving money on health care by going abroad (see Why Go Abroad for Medical Care Reason #1: Cost Savings, Why Go Abroad for Medical Care Reason #2: Better Quality Care, and Medical Tourism Can Save You Thousands of Dollars) as well as how people can save by retiring abroad (see The Best Foreign Country for Retirees), so isn't the next logical step to consider a nursing home in a foreign country? Here's what USA Today has to say about the trend:

For $1,300 a month — a quarter of what an average nursing home costs in Oregon — Douglas gets a studio apartment, three meals a day, laundry and cleaning service, and 24-hour care from an attentive staff, many of whom speak English. She wakes up every morning next to a glimmering mountain lake, and the average annual high temperature is a toasty 79 degrees.

An estimated 40,000 to 80,000 American retirees already live in Mexico, many of them in enclaves like San Miguel de Allende or the Chapala area, says David Warner, a University of Texas public affairs professor who has studied the phenomenon. There are no reliable data on how many are living in nursing homes, but at least five such facilities are on Lake Chapala alone.

The sidebar of the piece lists the following facts on the U.S. versus Mexico when it comes to a couple nursing home costs:

Cost of a home health care aide: (per hour)

• USA: $19
• Mexico: $9

Cost of a homemaker-companion: (per hour)

• USA: $17
• Mexico: $2-$5

I think this is a trend to watch. The question here is: would you let someone you love (or yourself) move to a nursing home in a foreign country?

Comments

[Kelly]

If my parents wanted to move to this kind of place I would say go for it! It sounds like a great place to visit. However, I think it would be potentially offensive for me to suggest to my parents (or anyone for that matter) that they move to another country.

[Minimum Wage]

Shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union and the Berlin Wall, my former employer suggested this sort of opportunity for emerging ex-Soviet republics and for elderly Americans for whom it would be more affordable. Obviously, Mexico is a lot closer and better situated.

[annab]

I'd be reluctant to have a relative in a facility that I couldn't easily visit.

[charles gill]

medi care does not pay outside of US