What happens when an American from Miami is in need of some very expensive dental work and cannot afford the exorbitant US prices for dental coverage?

Well, he moves to Israel and starts a company that provides cheaper and higher quality dental surgeries and implants in Israel of course. He also begins helping other people who have the exact same problem all over the world to receive the highest quality dental care that is available.

That in short is the story of Michael Lasry, who needed a lot of dental work done, including implants, and simply found that the cost was too prohibitive.

“I got quotes that were very expensive, so I looked in to traveling to other countries to get the work done, such as India, Costa Rica, South Korea and other dental tourism locations,” he told Breaking Israel News. “I found that Israel was compatible with the prices I was quoted in other countries but didn’t see anyone actually providing the service to foreigners.”

Lasry decided to take matters into his own hands and founded Tour and Smile, a company that provides VIP service and care for dental patients coming from abroad to Israel. Aside from dental services, Tour and Smile was also founded with the belief that while in Israel, people should take the time to get to know the land of Israel.

Lasry was originally frustrated with how the system in Israel treated patients, many of whom had to go from clinic to clinic to shop for the correct treatment plan and price, and got different answers from each doctor they went to.

“I began looking for dentists and dental surgeons in the country and what I found was when a client came in they saw three different dentists, got three different treatment plans, and whatever worked for payment for the clinic. For me that system just wouldn’t do. We want to provide the best customer service possible,” he explained.

Lasry teamed up with local dentists and oral surgeons and by working together, Tour and Smile not only manages to provide great customer service but prices that are much lower than those of other dental tourism locations around the world.

“We aren’t doing this to get rich, we are doing it for the better treatment of the client. I myself know how frustrating the entire process can be, and our goal is to eliminate that frustration and the extra costs,” Lasry said.

“We try to give our clients quotes right away but often we will need to see a panoramic x-ray in order to give them a proper quote. Usually that is enough to provide the patient with a treatment plan that we can then discuss and get them a quote for,” he added.

In a further effort to make the process as quick and painless as possible, Tour and Smile uses a technology referred to as ‘immediate loading’ for dental implant procedures. “We are able to extract teeth and at the same time we can place the implants, the posts and the temporary crowns made out of an acrylic material on the same day. Within 24 hours they can eat anything they want,” Lasry said about their state of the art technology.

“They do need to return between 3-6 months later to receive the permanent crowns, while the temporary crowns can last up to a year if needed,” he said.

As for restorative dentistry, Tour and Smile’s treatment options are among some of the most advanced that a person can receive. Lasry attests to the expertise of the doctors, based upon his client satisfaction.

“We have a 98 percent success rate which is incredibly high. Over the seven years that we have been working with our current doctor we have only had two patients with issues,” he said.

Aside from the medical expertise and the VIP treatment, which includes being picked up at the airport by a Tour and Smile representative who accompanies the client throughout their entire experience, is the price.

According to Lasry, “In the US the same procedure of a full mouth restoration would cost $80,000 – $100,000 whereas in Israel we could do the same procedure for $28,000 – $35,000. The quality of the work here is higher as we include more implants and crowns.”

Lasry is proud of the personnel VIP service his company can give to those going through what can be a harrowing experience. Tour and Smile is right there alongside each patient, from the moment they contact them until they say goodbye at the airport.

“Most of the clients who come turn into personal friends. The doctors are personable, and we stay with the clients from the time the book until they receive their last crown. We’ve never had someone who was upset with the work done, and we do our best to keep it that way.” said Lasry.  “We are all about the health of the client, that is what we do, and part of that is the emotional and mental stress that the client who is in need of dental implants goes through. We do everything we can to alleviate that.”

To learn more about Tour and Smile, click here.