Mexico; Look What We Did

The number-one question people ask us is, "What possessed you to move to Mexico?" The number-one answer we give is that we simply could no longer afford to live in America, so we found a country where we could, and moved there.

We found ourselves in a position not unlike many Americans: A major illness strikes, unexpectedly, and though insured and with incomes, the cost of funding the illness simply becomes too much. It becomes, essentially, impossible. We were not alone.

It turns out that more than 50% of bankruptcies filed in 2001 were medically related and were filed by middle-class homeowners who not only had an income but also health insurance. The prevailing myth that most bankruptcies are due to credit card debt is not true. Less than 1% of filed bankruptcies are due to credit card debt.

Researchers found that, in those surveyed, 1.9 to 2.2 million U.S. residents filed a "medical bankruptcy". The average person filing for bankruptcy during the 2001 period spent $13,460 on co-payments, deductibles, and uncovered services even though they had private insurance.

"Our study is frightening. Unless you're Bill Gates, you're just one serious illness away from bankruptcy. Most of the medically bankrupt were average Americans who happened to get sick. Health insurance offered little protection," said Dr. David Himmelstein, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School who led the study.

Another one of the study's authors, Elizabeth Warren, said, "It doesn't take a medical catastrophe to create a financial catastrophe. A larger share of American workers are going to have insurance that's like a paper umbrella. It looks good, and it might even protect you in a sprinkle, but it melts away in a downpour."

In the fall of 2002, we began to feel the sprinkle on our paper umbrella turn into an unstoppable downpour. We had to do something before the full brunt of the downpour tore the paper umbrella to shreds and our lives along with it. We began to look to other alternatives to purchase our prescription drugs and found them.

Other Americans are finding themselves in the same boat with not many options from which to choose. I was reading the other day where a married couple from Illinois sued the Federal government for the right to import prescription medications from Canada.

They lost. The judge dismissed the case. Maybe they should sell everything and move to Mexico as we did.

Moving to another country-one with a different language and culture-can offer many new challenges that can surprise you, shock you, and delight you. It takes a bit of getting used to, to say the least.

One such shock was the first time I got all my needed prescriptions refilled. I knew from our research to expect cheaper prices but I did not know how cheap!

I went to the ATM and secured a fist full of pesos then trudged onward to the Farmacia. They were helpful and cheerful but when they told me the total price, I had to re-ask, in my terrible Spanish, if they were sure of the price.

You see, I was able to get all my drugs refilled for the price of one, count it, one co-pay of a name-brand drug in America! I am not making this up. A month's supply of generic Prozac is less than $16.00 USD!

We stepped into a new reality where everything--prescription drugs, housing, utilities, food, transportation, entertainment--is 25-75% less than it is in America. My Social Security Disability income adequately covers our expenses here in Guanajuato, Mexico.

Moving to Mexico--an alternative for everyone? I doubt it. The solution? I don't know. What I do know is that we, and many other Americans, cannot sit idly by waiting for our elected officials to work it out. We had to take action--drastic as it was.

That paper umbrella wasn't going to last long!

Expatriates Doug and Cindi Bower have successfully expatriated to Mexico, learning through trial and error how to do it from the conception of the initial idea to driving up to their new home in another country. Now the potential expatriate can benefit from their more than three years of pre-expat research to their more than two years of actually living in Mexico. The Plain Truth about Living in Mexico answers the potential expatriate's questions by leading them through the process from the beginning to the end. In this comprehensive guide, you will learn not only how-to expatriate but will learn what to expect, in daily life, before coming to Mexico. BUY BOOK HERE: http://www.universal -publishers.com/book.php?method=ISBN&book=1581124570

---

Conspiracy Theory; Kill Off the Old Folks

Recently I met a man in a coffee shop, a... Read More

End Of History? Not Quite

A visitor to Moscow would be immediately struck by the... Read More

Mass Transportation Efficiencies and Price Per Rider Theories

Having redundancies and today's technologies in transportation we have protected... Read More

Truckers Take Some Hits and Keep On Trucking

After 9-11 insurance rates on Independent Truck Drivers and smaller... Read More

Employment Legislation: Proposed Employment Law Changes - To Take Effect 1 October 2005

Proposed changes to the Sex Discrimination Act ("SDA") 1975 and... Read More

Water at the Roots of Twenty First Centurys Conflicts

According to a postulate made by Ignacio Ramonet ecological resources... Read More

The Economics of Cloning Armies or Super Families

Let's put the religious part of the debate for a... Read More

Federal Trade Commission Franchising Division; Inept?

Why are we over regulating the franchising industry? What are... Read More

The Contemporary Global Marketplace - IT, Software, and Services

"Had there not been outsourcing and utilization of cheaper resources... Read More

Telemarketing and Job Losses

Telemarketing and DO NOT CALL lists sure made headlines, but... Read More

Let me throw out a random thought on Homeland Security Leadership Structure

Streamlining Homeland Security with a Free market flair? An idea... Read More

Public Schools Are Un-American

Compulsory-attendance laws force parents to send their children to public... Read More

No Child Left Behind needs to go Virtual

The No Child Left Behind can work if the Federal... Read More

The Halakah and Neo Cons

These leaders like the Rothschilds who backed Crowley's Hermetic Order... Read More

NASA Budget Space Shuttle Thoughts

Regarding the issues with the Space Shuttle and the in... Read More

Fraud From FTC Insiders, Who Can You Trust?

The FTC franchising division purports their law enforcement experience in... Read More

Fair Trade and Pearls in the U.S.

Guides for RetailersThe regulations about marketing pearls are listed in... Read More

Cops Want To Increase Marijuana Punishments?

Leave it to the Columbia City Police Officers Association in... Read More

Emminent Domain May Hit Close to Home

IN A DAY AND AGE where one voice screaming among... Read More

Common Sense vs. Common Senseless - How Thomas Paine Can Be Applied To Modern Day; Part Two

The cause of America is in a great measure the... Read More

Paid Assassins

The civil war in Iraq seems to be much more... Read More

Poitical Opinion - No Comment

Publicity is correlative to your position in the community. Seldom... Read More

Religion, Wars and Civilization

Many are quick to point out the benefits of religion... Read More

Netanyahu: Too Late For A Fight-back?

The resignation from cabinet yesterday, Sunday, by the Israeli minister... Read More

Rants by Lance: BRAC Committee Talks Irrelevant Completely

It is amazing we have so many men, who belong... Read More

Famous Filibusters in Political History

The filibuster as a political delaying tactic has been a... Read More

Self Destruct Strategies in UAV Construction

All UAVs Need a Self Destruct BLOS DeviceWhat do you... Read More

Government Workers and Lawyers Revolving Door Rule Needed

We need more oversight and transparency in government. We need... Read More

Council of Six

The head of the Club of Rome has said that... Read More

Thomas Paine / Jefferson

Conor MacDari was a Mason but his Masonry deplored the... Read More

China has the Answer to Environmental Dead Zones

Recently scientists have been watching the exponential growth of marine... Read More

Discount Cigarettes and Cheap Tobacco from Europe to the UK

It never fails to amaze me. HM Customs and Excise... Read More

Government is a Franchise System; just not a very good one

Few understand the Franchising Format and even fewer have correlated... Read More