Knee surgery in Spain: €18,500 and a complaint about the soup
Knee surgery costs between €12,000 and €18,500 in Spain. A patient complained about his hospital food, sparking a debate over costs, waiting times and immigration.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
The real cost of knee surgery in Spain: between €12,000 and €18,500 if all goes well
A patient admitted to a Spanish hospital recorded a video complaining that he had not been allowed to eat or drink since eight in the morning and about the food he was served: monkey soup, in his own words. The video went viral and triggered a wave of reactions mixing the real cost of healthcare, waiting times and the growing tension around immigration.
What a meniscus and ligament operation really costs
Based on calculations using private and public healthcare tariffs, a meniscus and ligament repair surgery (such as the ACL) has an estimated total cost of between €12,000 and €18,500 if there are no complications. If infections, stiffness or graft rupture appear, the bill can shoot up to €28,500. In the public system, the patient does not pay directly, but the real cost to society is around €8,000-12,000 for the operation plus €3,000-5,000 for rehabilitation, with waiting times of 6 to 12 months for non-urgent surgery.
A complaint that does not fit the context
The original video shows a patient bitterly complaining about being served soup and not being allowed solid food. The reactions were not long in coming: from those pointing out the ingratitude of someone receiving free (or subsidised) care to those defending that the right to complain is universal. The irony of the matter is that many users calculate that the cost of the hospital stay and the operation far exceeds that of a restaurant menu, and that the public system is already making a considerable effort.
Immigration, healthcare and perceptions
The thread quickly drifts towards the migration debate. Comments appear about the number of citizenships granted in Galicia (more than 8,300 in 2025, according to a news story mentioned) and about the attitude of some groups. The healthcare data fades into the background, but the underlying question is whether the system can sustain the increase in demand without friction. What no analysis quite explains is why, with these costs, a complaint about a soup generates as much outrage as understanding.
The conclusion is that the debate on immigration and public healthcare is far from settled, and that a simple hospital video can condense all the tensions: the cost of care, the patient's expectations and social tolerance.
Related debates in the forum
A patient admitted to a Spanish hospital recorded a video complaining that he had not been allowed to eat or drink since eight in the morning and about the food he was served: monkey soup, in his own words. The video went viral and triggered a wave of reactions mixing the real cost of healthcare, waiting times and the growing tension around immigration.
What a meniscus and ligament operation really costs
Based on calculations using private and public healthcare tariffs, a meniscus and ligament repair surgery (such as the ACL) has an estimated total cost of between €12,000 and €18,500 if there are no complications. If infections, stiffness or graft rupture appear, the bill can shoot up to €28,500. In the public system, the patient does not pay directly, but the real cost to society is around €8,000-12,000 for the operation plus €3,000-5,000 for rehabilitation, with waiting times of 6 to 12 months for non-urgent surgery.
A complaint that does not fit the context
The original video shows a patient bitterly complaining about being served soup and not being allowed solid food. The reactions were not long in coming: from those pointing out the ingratitude of someone receiving free (or subsidised) care to those defending that the right to complain is universal. The irony of the matter is that many users calculate that the cost of the hospital stay and the operation far exceeds that of a restaurant menu, and that the public system is already making a considerable effort.
Immigration, healthcare and perceptions
The thread quickly drifts towards the migration debate. Comments appear about the number of citizenships granted in Galicia (more than 8,300 in 2025, according to a news story mentioned) and about the attitude of some groups. The healthcare data fades into the background, but the underlying question is whether the system can sustain the increase in demand without friction. What no analysis quite explains is why, with these costs, a complaint about a soup generates as much outrage as understanding.
The conclusion is that the debate on immigration and public healthcare is far from settled, and that a simple hospital video can condense all the tensions: the cost of care, the patient's expectations and social tolerance.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (52 replies).
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