I had a sore throat when I went to bed while staying with the Brunca people in Costa Rica. When I woke up, it wasn’t better and it only got worse as the morning persisted. I decided I should probably get some medicine to nip this in the bud and not let it ruin the rest of my trip. But I didn’t really know where I should go.
My research online revealed that I had several options but all would basically result in quality care and be very low cost to me, even as a tourist without insurance. That’s because Costa Rica has a universal healthcare system that guarantees medical care to anyone who needs it. It’s considered the best in Latin America and people from all over the world go there for its low cost and high quality doctors and services.
At the recommendation of my Brunca hosts, I decided to visit a hospital just 35 minutes away. Despite a nearly 4-hour wait time in the heat, I received fast, quality care with easy access to all I needed to complete my visit and get my prescriptions filled right there in the hospital.
Medical Care Without Insurance In Costa Rica?
Costa Rica has a robust and inclusive healthcare system known as "Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social" (CCSS), or simply "Seguro Social." In this system, Costa Ricans have a ~9-10% deduction from their salary for healthcare and retirement which covers all medical costs including pharmaceuticals.
For tourists, temporary insurance can be purchased to cover all costs for about $40-60 per month. This option makes sense if you plan to stay a while and don’t have another type of insurance covering medical expenses on your trip. I didn’t get it, for example, because I purchased World Nomad insurance for my entire trip which included more than just potential medical costs.
Costa Rican law says that whether you have insurance or not all people who need medical assistance will receive it in their country no matter what. To us Americans, this probably seems like there must be some catch. To me it’s the same as many countries I’ve visited around the world and makes the most sense from a humanistic standpoint.
Americans and other foreigners love to visit Costa Rica because of its healthcare system. The country has become a popular destination for medical tourism, attracting individuals seeking high-quality medical care at a fraction of the cost in their home countries.
Before I left the beautiful Rey Curré area, I asked my Brunca hosts their recommendation. Jahel suggested I go to a hospital—that the care would be excellent there even if I had to wait a bit for it.
My view before leaving Rey Curre for the hospital
The cost of urgent care at a hospital in Costa Rica for tourists can vary depending on several factors, including the specific medical issue, the hospital or clinic chosen, and the type of care required.
On average, a visit to an urgent care facility in Costa Rica may cost between $50 to $150 for basic services and consultations. I didn’t know how much it would cost me but I imagined what I needed was pretty basic. More complex treatments or procedures may incur higher costs. But the cost of healthcare services in Costa Rica, even for tourists, is generally lower than what you might find in many Western countries.
So I felt confident following Jahel’s recommendation.
Visiting Tomas Casas Hospital
Photo from puntarenas.com
Jahel suggested I go to Tomas Casa Hospital just 35 minutes away. It would be on my way North since my next destination was Monteverde.
I knew public healthcare can mean extra long wait times for non-emergencies. The recommendation is to get there when they open or else the earlier the better.
I tried to get to the hospital as early as possible without being rude to my Brunca hosts. I had breakfast to eat with them, a last view of the river to see, and then I needed to get on the road.
I arrived at about 10:15am. As I walked up to the doors, security asked me to put on a mask. Although you mostly sit outside the facility to wait to be seen, they were serious about enforcing masks as soon as you walk onto the hospital grounds.
Everyone spoke Spanish but I got by with my Google Translate app to express my needs. Security directed me to a short line. I was able to speak to a clerk at the window who got another clerk who spoke some English. I held up my translator anyway. Mainly what I wrote was this:
“I am a tourist. I have a very bad sore throat. I need to be prescribed a steroid to decrease inflammation and a course of antibiotics.”
"Soy un turista. Tengo un dolor de garganta muy fuerte. Necesito que me receten un esteroide para disminuir la inflamación y un curso de antibióticos".
I’ve experienced this same intensity of pain in my throat before and know exactly how to treat it in my body. Once the clerk read this message, he took my ID, wrote up my paperwork for me, and then gave me a little sticker with some of my information and time stamp of my arrival on it. I was directed to sit outside around the corner and to wait to be called.
The Wait
The area where I was waiting was covered and out of the sun. But it was still a very hot day. Just sitting in place, I was sweating streams down my body.
I felt like I might be fighting off a bit of a fever, too. But my throat was definitely throbbing with pain at this point. Overall, it was extremely uncomfortable.
After about 2 hours of waiting, I knocked on the door where I saw people being called in to see the doctor. Using Google Translate again, I explained that the heat and having no water or food was making my condition worse.
“I have been here for two hours. The heat, no water, and no food is making me feel worse. When can I see the doctor?”
He estado aquí durante dos horas. El calor, la falta de agua y la falta de comida me están haciendo sentir peor. ¿Cuándo puedo ver al médico?
They took my blood pressure, determined I was fine, and told me it would be another hour. They sent me back out to the waiting area.
Now I was counting down the minutes.
I was starting to get lightheaded from the pain, heat, and dehydration as we approached 1:20pm. I was about to head back in to say “It’s been over an hour!!” But that’s when one of the security people came and got me.
The Doctor’s Visit
I went inside and showed the same Google Translate message that I showed to the first clerk. The doctor understood and asked me to walk to the side door. He looked in my throat, felt my glands, and confirmed everything I said.
He asked me if I was allergic to any antibiotics. I am not. He then told me he would prescribe me an steroid pill and he asked if I wanted to get a shot of a steroid. He said “It will help you to function normally today.”
“Siiiiiiiii!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” I said. “GRACIASSSSSS".”
Hahaha. I knew I had a long drive ahead of me and wanted anything that would help me get through it!
One ass-cheek shot later, and he was sending me back out to the clerk to pick up my prescription. The entire doctor’s visit took no more than 10 minutes!
Paying And Pill Pick-Up
Now I was back out on the same line as I was on at the start. It was a little longer now. But I didn’t mind because I was on the cusp of getting out!
I quickly made it up to the window and the clerk took the paperwork the doctor gave me. He entered some information and then told me to take the paperwork to pay around the back of the hospital. After that, I could pick up my prescriptions which he had just submitted for me.
This is one of the coolest parts about Seguro Social: Everything is right there. All doctors, testing, machinery, and even the pharmacy is located at the same facility. There’s no need to drive over to some other specialist’s office to get a specific type of x-ray. And there’s no need to send your prescriptions into a pharmacy and then drive there to pick those up.
I was able to get the care I needed, pay, and then get my prescriptions all in one stop!
But first: Payment!
I walked up to the payment window and handed him my ID and paperwork. He looked it over, punched some things into the computer, then asked me a question in Spanish. I answered on my Google Translate:
I can pay with a credit card. I just need a receipt.
Puedo pagar con tarjeta de crédito. Solo necesito un recibo.
He responded but I didn’t understand. So he got out his Google Translate app and typed back in response:
So… I don’t pay? I guess I don’t pay!
I wrote down my email address and some other information and gave it to him. He did the same—wrote down an email address that I could follow up with later. But the wild thing is that I still haven’t paid to this day! I never received an invoice even after reaching out to them.
The guy explained I could just go pick up my prescriptions. I went over to the pharmacy and there was only one person ahead of me.
When I went up to the window, I gave them my ID and then they searched a pile of carefully labeled medication bags in front of them. They handed over a clear plastic packet of medications—all with Spanish language instructions on them. Thank gosh once again for Google Translate or I wouldn’t have known how to take them!
Now with my meds in hand, I was ready to hit the road. I was out of there at about 2:00pm—3 hours and 45 minutes after arrival. Phew!
As soon as I got in the car, I turned on the A/C and blasted it at my face. I downed a liter of warm water that had been sitting in the car all afternoon. I also started chowing down on some leftover snacks I had.
At that point, I was already feeling better. The steroid shot was clearly taking effect because my throat was immediately like 75% better and I suddenly had a bunch of energy.
Goodbye Lucia, Hello Blanca!
The only catch was that my A/C was still blasting hot air. I got on the road hoping it would fix itself. After a good hour of driving I decided to call the car rental company. They offered to meet me and swap out my car for a new one. Luckily, I was driving back North so the road would intersect with a highway from San Jose where the rental company was located.
I got as far as Crocodile Bridge without A/C. This was a stop I made on my first day in Costa Rica heading down to the Osa Peninsula. I picked up an empanada which gave me a bit more energy.
This was the perfect stop on my way North, but my car was still pumping out mostly warm air. I say mostly because intermittently it would give me cool-ish air but there was definitely something still wrong!
I met up with the rental company driver and I officially handed over Lucia.
I was handed in return… the same exact white Geely! This one was just even newer with only 200km on it. Wow!
Goobye Lucia… Hello Blanca!!!!!!
Swapping Geelys - Blanca (left) and Lucia (right)
I had less than 2 hours left to my drive at this point. I didn’t really want to do any part of this drive at night, alas, dusk was coming and going. We can’t always plan for everything.
Besides, I was so happy I addressed my sore throat as soon as possible that day. I barely missed the time spent and was already feeling 90% better.
Going To Monteverde
Most of the drive to Monteverde was an incline up very twisty roads. I couldn’t see the views around me in the pitch darkness of the area, but I could feel the geography change.
A sneak peek: Sunset in Monteverde the next night!
It was as if I could sense there were mountains and rolling hills all around me. The climate also changed dramatically. I went from sweltering in the shade outside the hospital earlier that day to needing a sweatshirt when I stopped at the first convenience store in town.
Clearly I was at higher elevation.
I booked a hostel stay in Monteverde on my way up. I decided to stay in a room to myself since I was just sick. I didn’t want to get others in a dorm sick but I also wanted to be able to fully rest and recover. Pampering myself with a nice big, cozy room was definitely the best plan! And this hostel had an amazing room for only $25 a night! Whew!
I got in at about 8pm and managed to find one of the only restaurants still open on a Monday night—a Mexican place! I figured, “OK, it’s not Costa Rican cuisine but we aren’t all that far from Mexico.” It had to be good, right?
Honestly, I barely remember it. I was so hungry, and scarfed it down so fast! But I obviously enjoyed the heck out of it so it doesn’t even matter if it was authentic or the best I’ve had or not. It hit the spot and that’s all I needed to then take a luxurious shower and dive into bed for a restful night’s sleep.
In Conclusion
Costa Rica is one of the best countries on Earth to get sick in as a tourist. Wait time and heat aside, the care I received was excellent and the super low cost makes it the obvious medical tourism destination. The best part was that the doctor listened to my needs and trusted that I knew my body best—I asked and I received.
I don’t think I will ever know the true cost of my visit, however. I never received an email from the hospital with an invoice and I tried emailing them but never received a response! Even though my world nomad insurance would have paid for it, I never had to make a claim because I never paid!
Perhaps one day I’ll have the opportunity to return and pay them appropriately. Until then, I am extremely grateful for the excellent care I received using Costa Rica’s Seguro Social healthcare system.
