I was forwarded this 4 minutes ago after I posted about hospitals.

I said Spencer said a hospital can't hold you hostage for a bill, keep your passport, etc.

Here is what I was sent, and I confirmed it does come from the U.S. Government.
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In Mexico, the Federal General Health Law (La Ley General de Salud) governs the rights and
responsibilities of hospitals and patients. The key provisions of the law require the nearest
medical facility to see patients with emergency medical conditions, that patients receive
complete information about their diagnosis and care, and that patients authorize any treatment.
Additionally, patients have the right to consent to treatment and where they will receive
treatment. Finally, hospitals may not retain or attempt to detain a patient, his/her passport, or
body to guarantee payment of medical services provided. However, the patient, family
members, or legal representative who authorized the treatment is also responsible for arranging
payment of the bill with the hospital administration and/or insurance company.

Spencer isn't generally wrong about things such as this. He reads the new laws (last year I believe) and let's us know so we aren't illegally detained without knowing our rights.

Spencer is very good at keeping current and at business.

They cannot hold you hostage or make you sign documents you do not understand. Plan ahead of time so as not to be sent to some expensive hospital you cannot afford and will have problems at check out time.

El paciente hospitalizado en una institución privada tiene derecho a recibir información sobre honorarios médicos y costos de los servicios y, en caso de no cubrirlos, no podrá ser retenido contra su voluntad.

Constitution prohibits being jails for debts

I will tell my story again .I was held hostage for 8 hours by supposedly one of the best hospitals in Guad.I had life saving surgery and upon being released by the Dr. I was told my bill was 2.1 million pesos .It was approx 750000 pesos the day before. My insurance would pay the 750000 , the normal amount for this type surgery ,but no more.I was not allowed to leave , even threatened to call the police if I tried to leave .I was barely able to walk due to my condition and kept throwing up due to withdrawal from drugs.No food , no drink .My wife attempted to negotiate with them to no avail.Was never told what the charges would be , what medications I was given , nothing .This has been going on for 9 months . Legal fees mounting .Hospital has sent people to my home to try to threaten and intimidate us , has called many times on cell and home phone to threaten .A friend , who has since passed away, had the same problem at same hospital and had to max out his credit cards to pay the bill and still had to call a lawyer to get out of the hospital since he couldn't the full amount .Have since discovered several other expats in same situation.U.S. Consulate could care less , said it wasn't their problem. This is not the only hospital doing this. They are breaking the law and don't care .They have big time lawyers .BEWARE.

Name the Hospital / Hospitals...so others can avoid your experience..

Yes, name the hospital please. Hard to beware if we don't know what to beware of.

There is much more to the nightmare . PM for more info .The Dr. and hospital were in this together but they are not the only Dr. or hospital .It is a well planned situation to get as much money as possible from expats .I am involved in serious legal action and cannot name either on a web site.Believe me I would love to expose them on every site available.

good guess

Texican13 wrote:There is much more to the nightmare . PM for more info .The Dr. and hospital were in this together but they are not the only Dr. or hospital .It is a well planned situation to get as much money as possible from expats .I am involved in serious legal action and cannot name either on a web site.Believe me I would love to expose them on every site available.

I would have a "friend" posting from Canada or the USA expose the shit out of them on every social media site and local forum there is. If what they post is just the facts and the truth there is nothing they can do about it.

A friend had an unhappy experience with Hospital del Carmen. She drove a neighbor there who died in the emergency room. The hospital exerted serious pressure on my friend trying to get HER to pay. She was in no position to do so. A family member flew down and they wouldn't release the body until the bill was paid, including the "storage" time. Nice attitude, eh?

I won't bore you with anymore details but I can tell you there is much more to this story and it is happening far too often .I have tried every outlet I can think of to try and alert the expats to the problem to no avail. It would take a long time to give all of the details of mine and other peoples story. , which can be documented and proved .Not to minimize other peoples problems , but this is more serious than traffic bribes , businesses short changing people etc. People have lost their retirement savings , other assets and in some cases been threatened to lose their homes , me included.

Have you contacted the GDL Reporter? They may be interested in the story.

Have tried before but got response , tried again today and they asked for details . Maybe we can get something started . You have to understand , this hospital is in 5 major mexican cities and so is the law firm in Guad that represents them .They will not go quietly , they have made that very clear to me.Don't know you personally but several of my friends do .Thank you for your interest.

The newspapers expose far bigger stories and companies than this. They know how to present a story without getting sued.

A newspaper would contact them for their side of the story prior to publishing. Assuming they have a side....

I don't find the GR a particularly good investigative newspaper. They generally shy away from anything even remotely controversial. Maybe one of the bigger Mexican newspapers in Guad would be interested in FACTS.

I agree with your take on the GR however the story is primarily of interest to expats in the area because that is who is getting ripped off. Most people in Guadalajara could probably care less.

I would guess that if the hospitals are this predatory, they are doing it to everyone regardless of country of origin.

Stay outta del Carmen and the rest of those glitzy overpriced hospitals, done. Eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly, get checkups from a good doc who will use the smaller less expensive hospitals, and practice prevention. And keep your fingers crossed.

I have a friend who recently had a very successful arthroscopic knee surgery at the Clinica Ibarra in Chapala. Dr. Juan Pablo Lozano is her GP and was in attendance.

Sorry, autoincorrect snuck in. Juan Pablo Loza is his name.

BTW....the last I had surgery for kidney stones at Country 2000 my GP checked on their tally every day and went over the final tab to ensure there was no shenanigans. The final tab was pretty much as estimated up front. I even accidentally overpaid them by $20,000 pesos and the hospital called me and had me come back for a refund.