One of the things I’ve learned from reading the Facebook groups is that there’s a lot of Irish people going abroad to get bariatric surgery.
The waiting list for getting weight loss surgery on the public health system is often years, and for those that don’t have private health insurance and are willing to self-pay, then the cheaper surgical prices abroad can seem tempting.
If you have private health insurance in Ireland, and you meet the requirements such as having a BMI over 40, then you will most likely be covered for surgery. However if you don’t have insurance, or you don’t meet the requirements, then the standard cost of around €15,000 in the Irish private hospitals for a gastric bypass can prompt people to look for cheaper options.
Some of the prices quoted for gastric sleeves and bypasses are in the range:
- Turkey – €2,975 to €3,400
- Lithuania – €5,500
- Latvia – €5,370
- Czech Republic – €4,500
- Belgium – €4,300
- Poland – €6,000
All of those prices are significantly cheaper than Ireland – even when you add the cost of flights on top!
Dr Bodnar in Letterkenny
Another option closer to home is a Dr Bodnar who operates out of Letterkenny General Hospital. He is reported to perform gastric sleeves for around €6,000 and gastric bypasses for €7,500.
That might be an option for people who worry about travelling abroad.
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