Woman flies to Turkey to avoid paying $3000 for a root canal in the US and saves $1,800

Editor's Note: This article was originally published on June 1, 2022

An Irish woman living in Atlanta is going viral on social media after sharing a video of the lengths she had to go to for an affordable root canal. Delia O’Malley, who goes by @asdeliadoes on TikTok, grabbed people's attention when she revealed in a recent video that she traveled to Turkey for a root canal after she was told the procedure would cost more than $3,000 in the United States even with her health insurance. "I just got out of the dentist and they gave me a quote for a root canal. Guess how much? Yep, $3099.16, and that is with my insurance," she says in the video.

"So I just booked a flight to Turkey. I fly out tomorrow morning at 11 a.m.," O'Malley then reveals, laughing. She then proceeds to explain that, instead of spending more than $3,000 on the procedure in America, she booked a root canal with a Turkish dentist, a round-trip flight and a stay at an all-inclusive hotel for less than half the cost she was quoted in America: $1,167 in total. The root canal itself only cost $160 and around $800 was spent on her round-trip flight from Atlanta, Georgia, to Izmir, Turkey, and $200 went to her seven-day hotel stay, she shared.

Since being posted on May 20, O'Malley's video—which she captioned "My dentist wanted $3,099 for a root canal so I booked a week in Turkey to get it done here! Came to less than $1,200. So I get a root canal and a holiday now"—has received more than 3.2 million times. It prompted many TikTok users to share their own experiences with traveling abroad to have less expensive dental or cosmetic surgeries. "I'm from Brazil and I go home whenever I need to see a doctor. Other than being cheaper the doctors are way more attentive," commented one TikTok user. "Why aren't people doing this more?" another commenter wrote. "I went to Poland to have an implant, with three kids, stayed at a hotel for a week, went shopping and still saved money."

"My family drove my sister and I from Los Angeles to Tijuana, MX for braces because it was the only way we could afford it," yet another shared. Meanwhile, several others took the opportunity to call out the American healthcare system for its exorbitant prices. "Tell me you are from the US without telling me you are from the US," commented one individual, while another wrote: "America is so profit-driven. It's sad that people go bankrupt trying not to die."

O'Malley revealed in the comment section that she "went to Dental Cosmetic Kusidasi. I highly recommend them. I had two veneers done there in 2022 and they did a great job. Very professional!!" Meanwhile, there were some eagle-eyed TikTok users who noticed that the $3,000 quote was for more than just a root canal. The itemized bill that priced the root canal at $1,282, also listed a crown and two fillings. However, that didn't stop people from calling out the astronomical price. "I love how some people are like 'that's for more than just a root canal' as if that makes the bill less insane," one wrote. "Everyone defending that it's for multiple services, failing to realize that all those services still shouldn't cost that much," another pointed out. "All the 'that's not bad' people are so brainwashed, I swear," one commenter wrote. "It is bad. With insurance?! Guys. Come on."