JamesonCourage
Adventurer
Last month, I was in a car wreck, which caused me to create this thread: http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?353440-Scary-Moments
A week ago, I got a call from pseudo-collections trying to get me to pay for the ambulance ride after my accident. I'm covered, but I had to go to some lengths to get them to stop harassing me (threaten to hang up if they didn't let me speak; tell them if they tried to make me, personally, pay again, we're done with this conversation; provide all the details with my coverage even though this had been previously covered; etc.).
Even though there's been no problem since, the thing that struck me was the cost. They wanted me to pay just over $2,800 for the ambulance fee. A couple things strike me about this:
(1) I actually had to split the ambulance with the woman who rammed me, totaling both of our cars. They didn't call a second ambulance because they were too busy.
(2) We only drove to a city that was fifteen minutes away. Even then, we only went to that specific hospital because the woman that hit me requested it.
(3) My injuries weren't severe, and I told people on the scene twice that I didn't think I'd need care (the police and the fire department) before the third person convinced me to go (a paramedic). My injuries included a bruised and cut knee, a bad almost-rug-burn from my seatbelt, and a few cuts on my forearm or knuckle (probably from glass). I have no idea if severity of injuries play into the cost of the ambulance one way or the other, though.
(4) How in the world could it possibly cost $2,800 for one person, much less two? (To be fair, I know she had no license and no car insurance, and the car wasn't in her name or that of a family member, so it's possible she doesn't have insurance and they're putting it all on me.)
Considering the limited severity of my injuries, why didn't the police, fire department, or paramedics just tell me to take a taxi? I literally walked into the back doors with the paramedics when we arrived, and the doctors didn't even realize I was a patient for about two full minutes.
I remember reading that (extremely long but fascinating) Times article on health care costs in the US, but nearly $3,000 for an ambulance ride just amazes me. Anyone have any insight into the cost? Or anything similar? This kind of thing really interests me.
A week ago, I got a call from pseudo-collections trying to get me to pay for the ambulance ride after my accident. I'm covered, but I had to go to some lengths to get them to stop harassing me (threaten to hang up if they didn't let me speak; tell them if they tried to make me, personally, pay again, we're done with this conversation; provide all the details with my coverage even though this had been previously covered; etc.).
Even though there's been no problem since, the thing that struck me was the cost. They wanted me to pay just over $2,800 for the ambulance fee. A couple things strike me about this:
(1) I actually had to split the ambulance with the woman who rammed me, totaling both of our cars. They didn't call a second ambulance because they were too busy.
(2) We only drove to a city that was fifteen minutes away. Even then, we only went to that specific hospital because the woman that hit me requested it.
(3) My injuries weren't severe, and I told people on the scene twice that I didn't think I'd need care (the police and the fire department) before the third person convinced me to go (a paramedic). My injuries included a bruised and cut knee, a bad almost-rug-burn from my seatbelt, and a few cuts on my forearm or knuckle (probably from glass). I have no idea if severity of injuries play into the cost of the ambulance one way or the other, though.
(4) How in the world could it possibly cost $2,800 for one person, much less two? (To be fair, I know she had no license and no car insurance, and the car wasn't in her name or that of a family member, so it's possible she doesn't have insurance and they're putting it all on me.)
Considering the limited severity of my injuries, why didn't the police, fire department, or paramedics just tell me to take a taxi? I literally walked into the back doors with the paramedics when we arrived, and the doctors didn't even realize I was a patient for about two full minutes.
I remember reading that (extremely long but fascinating) Times article on health care costs in the US, but nearly $3,000 for an ambulance ride just amazes me. Anyone have any insight into the cost? Or anything similar? This kind of thing really interests me.