[harisenbon]

I'm heading back from Japan today, and my family got a bunch of checkups and medical stuff done while we were here.

Even without insurance all our procedures cost total less than ~$100 apiece.

The most expensive thing I've ever had in japan was my full body workup last year for $500.

It included: stomach ultrasound, 5 blood tests, eye exam, MRI(brain) and barium scan. All without insurance.

By comparison, in the US I was charged $1200 to get my daughters arm cast changed (no xray, just a nurse changing the cast), and $800 for an ultrasound.

It is literally cheaper to fly to Japan and get treatment without insurance than to use my health insurance that I pay $1300/month for.

Also, as a bonus, because of the set prices of medical procedures in Japan, insurance is super cheap. For a family of 4 it was costing me around $500/month when I used to live here.

[tacostakohashi]

Yep - if you're sick and in the U.S., don't go to the hospital, go to the airport.

[dingo_bat]

> I was charged $1200 to get my daughters arm cast changed (no xray, just a nurse changing the cast),

I hope the nurse got paid at least half of that.

[technics256]

Did you need to speak Japanese to get this done?

[harisenbon]

I'm in the middle of nowhere, so in my case I would need a smattering. However, almost all doctors can read/write English, even if they can't speak it. I've had 80 year old doctors proudly write down the word rheumatism, where I can barely get by with spellcheck.

In bigger cities, you'll definitely be able to find doctors who can speak English easily.

[tedmc]

Google Translate is magical. I've used it to speak with vendors and negotiate prices in China. Not optimal, but amazing. Works on text too....