Emergencies in Cozumel

Good to Know

• Save 911 in your phone before you need it — it covers police, fire, and ambulance in one call, and operators in Cozumel's tourist areas commonly speak at least basic English.
• If you call an ambulance, be aware it's likely privately run by a specific hospital — ask which hospital it's affiliated with and request a different one if it's not where you want to go, since your insurance/network may only work with certain hospitals.
• If you have no cell signal, flagging down a taxi is a real backup option — taxis in Cozumel carry radios and can call for police or an ambulance on your behalf.
• Keep a written or saved list of the local tourist police, municipal police, and Red Cross numbers as a backup to 911, since local units can sometimes respond faster than being routed through the national dispatch system.
• Private hospitals in Cozumel (Costamed, Cozumel International Hospital, Amerimed) commonly ask for an upfront cash or credit-card deposit before treatment, even if you have travel insurance — bring a card with sufficient limit and get a firm cost estimate before agreeing to treatment.
• Cozumel is a major scuba diving hub, so several hospitals (Cozumel International Hospital, Costamed, and San Miguel) operate their own hyperbaric/recompression chambers for decompression sickness — divers should know which facility their dive shop or insurer (e.g., DAN) recommends.
• For 911/ambulance dispatch, calling 9-1-1 is the standard emergency number on the island.
• There is no US-style Level I-IV trauma center designation system in Mexican hospitals; 'best' hospital reputations on the island are based on equipment, English-speaking staff, and traveler experience rather than an official trauma certification.