Medical issues in another country?
 

While traveling in Mexico a few months ago, I had an eye infection (which later turned out to be secondary from a throat infection). I ended up seeing two different hotel doctors, and I had some trip insurance that covered the price of these incidents since it all occurred during my trip. I finally received the refund for that today but that got me thinking:

If there had not been hotel doctors, I would probably have had to go to the hospital. What would have happened then (assuming I didn't have that trip insurance)? Do they make you pay upon leaving or bill you for it? What makes people even bother paying? Can you really be tracked down for a medical bill in another country? This is all assuming someone doesn't have medical insurance that would cover something like this.

In most countries you pay either when you enter the facility, at some point during the provision of care, or in some cases before you are discharged. People that don't pay up in some countries are dealt with by the police. Depending on the country, a jail cell might be almost as bad as the hospital (except Britain, where I'd much rather be in jail than in the hands of the NHS).

What if you can't pay though? Or you don't have that much money with you/available to you right then? They take you immediately to jail?

I can think of a few cases in Dubai where people who could not pay a hospital bill went to jail until they were able to arrange for payment or a kindly person hearing of their plight paid the bill on their behalf.

IMHO, the idea you can end up in jail is mostly hooey. :)

For example, I had several visits to the Doctor when I lived in Europe. In each case I was charged nothing. Payment was made by the socialized medicine system of the country I was in. Unlike the US, the Doctors didn't even really worry about the bill getting paid. ^

Perhaps if you are sick in an uncivilized nation (Dubai comes to mind) ...