Break a limb, hop a plane to Azores?

Back in 1997, you published my letter titled "The Price Was Right" regarding a medical emergency in Bilbao, Spain, after I got severe food poisoning. In my letter, I extolled the virtues of socialized medicine in that country.

This month, while visiting the island of Flores in the Azores, Portugal, I tripped on the sidewalk. At a clinic, I was immediately attended to by a doctor and two nurses, who gave me four stitches. They also X-rayed the elbow to ensure no break. That care, plus two follow-up visits to change the bandage, cost $26.

At those prices, it might be more cost-effective to buy an airline ticket to either Spain or Portugal to obtain medical treatment and have lots of fun sightseeing as well.

EDNA M. TOBIAS
July 23, 2006
Hermosa Beach