Four surgeries you can get in the US (and how to book them)

When you need surgery, no wait time is short enough

By Lauren McKeon | Illustrations by Jack Dylan

In 2012, 15,000 Ontarians travelled outside Canada for ­medical procedures. Speedy treatment is the draw: wait times for surgery in the U.S. are largely determined by how fast you can get your diagnostic paperwork in order. A half-dozen Canadian ­companies, like Vancouver’s Timely Medical Alternatives and Winnipeg’s CanAmericaHealth, act as cross-border health care brokers. They take a finder’s fee from the hospital, not the patient, and some even schedule appointments. Here, the four most common cross-border procedures.