Medical and dental tourism in Costa Rica: what to check before getting treated

Costa Rica is one of the most established medical tourism destinations in the world — it ranks seventh worldwide and second in Latin America (after Mexico) in this sector, with dentistry as its particular strength: dental treatments represent 42% of international demand, and more than 80% of those patients come from the United States.

**What to check before choosing where to get treated**:

• **International accreditation of the hospital or clinic**: the largest private hospitals in the country (for example Hospital CIMA and Clínica Bíblica) have accreditation from the **Joint Commission International (JCI)**, the international benchmark standard in hospital quality and safety — ask directly if the center you are considering has it.
• **Local certification for dental clinics**: there is an initiative from the Cámara de la Salud that certifies dental clinics based on experience in medical tourism, duly licensed and bilingual specialists, infrastructure and technology, safety protocols, and guarantees on treatments — it is worth asking if the clinic has this certification.
• **That specialists are licensed (colegiados)**: in Costa Rica, every physician and dentist practicing legally must be registered with the Colegio de Médicos y Cirujanos or the Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas — this can be confirmed directly with the corresponding college.

**Difference with public care (CCSS)**: medical tourism is done within the **private** system — the CCSS (the public health system) is not designed for foreign patients seeking a specific treatment and then returning to their country; the waiting times and care model of the CCSS are for the insured population of the country.

Note: as with any medical treatment outside your country of residence, it is advisable to plan post-treatment follow-up (especially in surgical procedures) before traveling, and to confirm directly with the clinic what guarantees they offer if something goes wrong after you return to your country.