Is Medical Tourism Safe? How to Check a Clinic Abroad

Every surgery carries risk, at home or abroad. This guide shows how U.S. patients can check a clinic, a doctor and a destination using official sources before booking.

Last updated: October 16, 2026

The short answer

Medical tourism can be done more safely, but it is never risk-free. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that some countries' requirements for licensing, credentialing and accreditation "may also be less than what would be required in the United States," and that "highly drug-resistant bacteria and fungi have caused disease outbreaks among medical tourists" (CDC). The checks below lower the risk. They cannot remove it.

Start with the CDC checklist

CDC's advice for people traveling for medical care includes (CDC):

Check the clinician and the facility. Check the qualifications of the clinician who will be doing the procedure and the credentials of the facility where it will be done.
See your own doctor first. Get a pre-travel consultation with your healthcare provider or a travel medicine clinician at least 4–6 weeks before the trip.
Get insurance that covers evacuation. CDC advises international travel health insurance that covers medical evacuation back to the United States.
Carry your records. Bring copies of your medical records, including lab results, and get copies of all records from the clinic before you fly home. You may need them translated into English.
Plan follow-up care at home before you travel.
Do not fly too soon. Flying after surgery can raise the risk of blood clots. CDC says delaying air travel for 10–14 days after major surgery, particularly chest surgery, will minimize risks linked to changes in air pressure.

Accreditation helps, but CDC also notes that "all surgeries carry the risk of complications and accreditation does not guarantee a positive outcome." Accrediting groups CDC names include Joint Commission International (JCI), DNV GL International Accreditation for Hospitals and the International Society for Quality in Health Care (CDC). CDC's Yellow Book for clinicians also cites the American College of Surgeons' recommendation to use internationally accredited facilities and specialists certified in their field (CDC Yellow Book).

Check the U.S. State Department travel advisory

The U.S. Department of State rates every country on four levels: Level 1 – Exercise Normal Precautions, Level 2 – Exercise Increased Caution, Level 3 – Reconsider Travel, Level 4 – Do Not Travel. Levels change, so check the official advisory just before you book and again before you fly.

Advisories for the countries currently listed on xcuro, as published by the State Department on the date we checked (October 16, 2026):

Mexico – Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution (advisory dated May 28, 2026)
Turkey (Türkiye) – Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution (June 8, 2026)
India – Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution (June 15, 2025)
Thailand – Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions (July 6, 2026)
South Korea – Level 1: Exercise Normal Precautions (May 27, 2025)

Mexico is not one place. The State Department's Mexico advisory says conditions "can vary widely from state to state and even within a state," that U.S. government employees may not travel to certain high-risk areas, and it links to maps of restricted areas. It strongly advises U.S. citizens to follow the same restrictions as government employees, such as not traveling between cities after dark (U.S. Department of State). Read the section for the exact state and city of your clinic, not only the country level.

How to check a doctor in Mexico

Medical licence (cédula profesional). In Mexico a doctor's professional licence number is called a cédula profesional. Ask the doctor for it in writing, then look it up in the Ministry of Public Education's (SEP) professional registry at cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx. Mexico's federal health regulator COFEPRIS has reported finding staff at irregular cosmetic-surgery clinics who were not health professionals and had no cédula profesional (COFEPRIS alert, 2014, in Spanish).
Specialty board certification. Mexico's specialty councils are grouped under CONACEM (Comité Normativo Nacional de Consejos de Especialidades Médicas). Its website has a doctor search to check whether a specialist holds current certification (CONACEM doctor search). CONACEM's list of councils includes the Consejo Mexicano de Cirugía Plástica, Estética y Reconstructiva for plastic surgeons and the Consejo Nacional de Certificación en Anestesiología for anesthesiologists (CONACEM councils).
The clinic's sanitary licence (COFEPRIS). COFEPRIS (Comisión Federal para la Protección contra Riesgos Sanitarios) advises patients, before cosmetic surgery, to make sure that the facility has a sanitary licence for surgical procedures on public display, that the surgeon is a plastic surgery specialist with the professional title on display, that anesthesia is given by a qualified anesthesiologist, that there is a separate restricted surgical area and a recovery area, and that medicines have a sanitary registration, are labeled in Spanish and are not expired (COFEPRIS alert). In the same alert COFEPRIS reported that, from 2011 to October 2014, it inspected 136 cosmetic-surgery clinics and suspended 25.

Other countries: ask the clinic which national authority licenses it and its doctors, then check that authority's own website rather than a certificate image sent by the clinic.

"Who will actually do my surgery?"

CDC's advice is to check "the qualifications of the clinician who will be doing the procedure" (CDC). That is not always the person in the ads or on the video call. Before you pay a deposit, ask the clinic to confirm in writing:

the full name and licence number of the surgeon who will operate on you;
the name and licence number of the anesthesiologist, and the type of anesthesia;
which parts of the operation, if any, will be done by other doctors or trainees;
the name and address of the hospital or surgical center where the operation will happen (it may differ from the clinic's office);
what happens if the named surgeon is not available on the day.

Then check each name with the steps above.

For the full list to send every clinic before you pay a deposit, use our printable checklist: 20 questions to ask a clinic abroad before you book.

What has gone wrong before

These are documented outbreaks among U.S. patients, reported by CDC:

Matamoros, Mexico, 2023 – fungal meningitis. Patients who had procedures under epidural anesthesia at two clinics in Matamoros (River Side Surgical Center and Clinica K-3) between January 1 and May 13, 2023 were at risk. As of August 31, 2023, CDC counted 10 confirmed and 14 probable U.S. cases and 12 deaths. The clinics were closed on May 13, 2023 (CDC).
Tijuana, Mexico, 2018–2019 – drug-resistant bacteria after weight-loss surgery. A CDC-led study found 38 U.S. case-patients in 18 states with an extensively drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa after elective procedures in Mexico, most often gastric sleeve surgery. 31 of them had been operated on by the same Tijuana surgeon, most often at one facility, which closed in March 2019 (CDC, Emerging Infectious Diseases, 2022).

CDC's Yellow Book also lists other outbreaks among medical tourists, including drug-resistant infections after invasive procedures in Mexico and nontuberculous mycobacterial infections after cosmetic surgery in the Dominican Republic (CDC Yellow Book).

What xcuro does and does not do

xcuro reviews publicly available information and communicates directly with providers before listing them, but we do not conduct formal medical audits, clinical inspections or independent evaluations of treatment outcomes. Please verify doctor credentials, licensing and hospital affiliations yourself using the official sources above. See our methodology and medical disclaimer.

FAQ

Is medical tourism safe?

It carries real risks, including infections, drug-resistant bacteria, blood clots after flying and communication problems, according to CDC (CDC). Checking the surgeon, the facility and the destination reduces risk but does not eliminate it.

Does accreditation mean a clinic is safe?

No. CDC states that accreditation does not guarantee a positive outcome (CDC). It is one check among several.

Will I have the same legal protection as in the U.S.?

Possibly not. CDC's Yellow Book warns that if complications develop, medical tourists "might not have the same legal recourse" as with care received in the United States (CDC Yellow Book).

How soon can I fly home?

Ask your surgeon. CDC's general guidance is that delaying air travel for 10–14 days after major surgery, particularly chest surgery, minimizes risks (CDC).

Sources

All sources accessed October 2026.

CDC Travelers' Health – Medical Tourism: wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/medical-tourism
CDC Yellow Book – Medical Tourism: cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/health-care-abroad/medical-tourism.html
U.S. Department of State – Mexico Travel Advisory: travel.state.gov (and the linked advisories for Turkey, India, Thailand and South Korea above)
CDC – Fungal Meningitis Outbreak Associated with Procedures Performed under Epidural Anesthesia in Matamoros, Mexico: archive.cdc.gov
Kracalik I, et al. Extensively Drug-Resistant Carbapenemase-Producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Medical Tourism from the United States to Mexico, 2018–2019. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 2022: wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/28/1/21-1880_article
COFEPRIS – Alerta sanitaria: Clínicas de cirugía estética irregulares (November 3, 2014, Spanish): gob.mx (PDF)
CONACEM – doctor search and list of specialty councils (Spanish): conacem.org.mx/buscador, conacem.org.mx/catalogo-consejos
SEP – Registro Nacional de Profesionistas, cédula profesional search (Spanish): cedulaprofesional.sep.gob.mx

Is medical tourism safe? How to check a clinic abroad