by Rod Hughes
We never thought we would see it happen in Costa Rica, the original “take me as I am” country.
Banks in this country are offering personal loans for extreme makeover plastic surgery that costs $2,000 and up, according to an article in the daily paper, Al Día.
Plastic surgery here has been in large part a sector of what some call “medical tourism,” the patients foreigners from developed countries. The surgeons are well-trained and some are bilingual, speaking fluent English they polished taking the specialty at U.S. universities.
According to plastic surgeons consulted by Al Día reporter Franklin Arroyo, although most of the resident patients are women, they are not all models. The younger Ticas (Costa Rican women) seek vibrosuction to remove fat cells and others seek breast augmentation, says Cristián Rivera, while the older women want breast reduction or re-shaping. Still others, he continued, want skin surgery for stretch marks after weight reduction.
But even a few Costa Rican men have caught the makeover craze for facial surgery and liposuction, according to Jorge Mora, vice president of the Costa Rican Plastic Surgeon’s Association. Women over 40 crave facelifts, he added.
But not all women are enthusiastic about going into debt. María Elena Rivera, a masseuse, told the paper, “I’m not satisfied with financing. It’s better to save up and pay cash.” (Judging from her photo in the paper, she really needs no alteration.)

by Rod Hughes
The Costa Rican government has agreed to foot the $10 million shortfall in funds allocated to rebuild the east tower at Calderon Guardia Hospital. The wing was destroyed in a fire July 12 of last year that killed 19 patients and nurses. Total cost of the reconstruction is $25 million.
The shortfall was caused when the Costa Rican government severed diplomatic relations with Taiwan last month, in favor of recognising mainland China. Taiwan had set aside a grant to help pay for the project, one of several aid programs canceled by Costa Rica’s change of foreign policy.
Eduardo Doryan, executive president of the Social Security Administration (Caja) has announced that bids are now being accepted for the work. The daily paper La Nación reported that, once the winning bid is accepted, the winning company will have 70 weeks to complete the shell and to equip it.
So long and complicated is the government bidding process in this country that Doryan refused to even speculated on the project’s completion date.
The six-story tower, 15,000 square meters in all, will contain 280 beds and will house obstetrics, gynocology and delivery rooms as well as radiology and CAT scans, etc.