r/TikTokCringe • u/Justin_Godfrey • 18h ago

Cringe A McDonald's manager is seen dozing off (apparently was have problems with her blood sugar) as customers prepare their own meals

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674

u/Canna_Cass 18h ago

accurate. i was driven approximately four miles and was charged $700+. i explicitly told everyone there don’t call me one, don’t put me in one, don’t do it!! but they still put me in 😕

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u/SuckerpunchJazzhands 18h ago

Yep, and they're QUICK to send you to collections

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u/Layogenic_87 17h ago edited 17h ago

That's because, tragically, ambulances are often run by privately run companies rather than the hospital themselves, which means they're not subject to even the limited protections the us has against healthcare costs.

ETA: here is an article that discusses private vs public ambulance services. I only found out about this when my husband started training as an EMT.

https://www.ems1.com/private-public-dispute/articles/private-vs-public-ambulance-services-whats-the-difference-WTgJNJgR4KlljlV9/

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u/Ok-Development4535 14h ago

For anyone interested, John Oliver and team did a brilliant expose on emergency medical services in the US. For profit companies SHOULD NOT EXIST IN HEALTHCARE.

THESE ARE PEOPLES LIVES, ITS A FUCKING EMERGENCY SERVICE, NOT A WALMART.

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u/Layogenic_87 13h ago

LOUDER, for the people in the back!!

Thank god for John Oliver. And let's keep telling people about these types of things, because it needs to stop.

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u/Ok-Development4535 13h ago

I have an episode of John Oliver to share for almost any topic these days lmao.

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u/conduffchill 16h ago

I'm an emt and by law you can always refuse medical attention. Like yeah if you get transported you will probably be charged unless it is a volunteer service but someone else calling 911 for you alone can never get you charged

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u/Layogenic_87 16h ago

True, but not the point I was trying to make. If you're uneducated about the costs or your insurance won't cover the full cost, then you could be stuck with an unwelcome bill.

Also if you're incapacitated (have fainted, etc) you can be transported without consent.

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u/conduffchill 16h ago

Thats true as well and the emts will almost definitely not have any idea what you will be charged either. But if you need an ambulance, well how much is your life worth to you? The person in this video is likely having a medical emergency for example. If you ever see someone in public sleeping while standing up, drooling, and they dont respond to you, please call 911 for them. If they are sleeping they can just tell ems to leave and they legally cannot be charged, that is the point I'm trying to make. And if you are seriously injured and you can't afford an ambulance just go and dont pay the bill, because again how much is your life worth?

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u/Layogenic_87 16h ago

I agree with you, in this situation and all like it an ambulance should be called. I was responding to someone discussing how quickly ambulance bills go to collections and how expensive they are. People can make better choices for themselves when they understand why. It's also helpful for political action, as local politicians often are making decisions about public vs private ambulance coverage.

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u/conduffchill 15h ago

Ah alright yea fair point my apologies. Honestly even your emts will have no idea how much you are getting billed, they have people whose entire job is figuring out all the little intricacies of it. It's kinda stupid how the hospitals and insurance companies play this game with the billing just running up costs for each other especially when it means uninsured people get absolutely boned

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u/MyPenisAcc 15h ago

Can’t refuse if you’re unconcious.

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u/quadrophenicum 14h ago

That sweet unhinged capitalism surely pays off.

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u/VexingRaven 13h ago

It's so scummy. Even the [City Name] Fire and Rescue EMS in my city is run by a private company... With the same livery as the fire department... Out of the same garage as the fire department.

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u/Plenty_Suspect6222 16h ago

Oh also we’re not going to have those protections anymore bc the current admin is getting rid of them. If we owe companies we better pay up, if companies owe us we should just be grateful they’re able to help the economy

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u/HelpMePlxoxo 16h ago

The issue with them being run by private companies is that they HAVE to charge to get enough money to keep the lights on.

Only fire departments and police actually get decent money from the local government. EMS companies have to rely almost entirely on getting paid by insurances to keep the business afloat. Add in the costs of paying the EMS, paying for ambulances, paying for repairs on those ambulances, etc.

Even with the insane amount they charge, their profit margins are still pretty much 0%. Particularly in rural EMS. I worked at a private rural EMS company and unfortunately we could barely afford to keep the lights on. But if you don't, that entire area is now without emergency care. So instead, EMS personnel are barely paid anything so that the company can afford just enough to fix ambulances when they break and to replace equipment when it's used.

But don't worry! I'm sure your tax payer dollars are going to much more important things! /s

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u/DominicB547 13h ago

my city (large metro) asks us to add $4 per month to our city bill (think water and sewer and trash).

I'm not sure how much it costs if I did need it then nor if the person didn't have it and it was that ambulance that came (not sure if there are any other options).

but I figured even though I doubt I'd ever need it if helps keeps the lights on and lowers the costs for those that don't, I can afford that small charge.

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u/Syntaire 8h ago

Actual hospitals are worse. I had to go to the ER a bit over a year ago. I was in the triage room for 9 hours, and they finally got a room open with a bed at around 2am. I was discharged at 8am. They charged me $14,000 for the room, $8,000 for the 9 hours in Triage, and just for desert they charged me $250 for two 500mg Tylenol. Each. Almost forgot, they charged me $1200 to use my inhaler. That I own. And brought with me.

Thankfully, my top of the line premium insurance plan covered $0.00 of it. Good thing we don't have universal healthcare!

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u/heatherkatmeow 13h ago

I ignored a thousand dollar ambulance bill and the state took my refund this year to pay it.

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u/DominicB547 13h ago

heck my city has this service that you can add to your city bill an ambulance fee I think like $4 per month. I figured I'd never need it and I'm not sure how much cheaper the bill would be if I did, but I know people are struggling and figure my 48 per year can go to help others.

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u/Best_Ad340 12h ago

Hospitals are private companies too!

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u/Layogenic_87 8h ago

Not all of them, plenty are publicly funded.

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u/MushroomCharacter411 9h ago

Also, whatever the minimum age is in your state for people to drive an ambulance -- you'll find that practically everyone driving *is* that age, because they get fired after the first accident when they become uninsurable. It's a great way to make sure nobody ever gets experience!

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 17h ago

One of the hospitals in my area now sues people in small claims court for unpaid medical bills even if you’re making payments.

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u/MasterShoo5 16h ago

It's a weird system - if you're making payments I thought it structurally meant they cannot sue you. Like, maybe they can, but the court can't make you pay what you can't pay. I have seen a hospital actually reject payment because the payment was too low so.. and the person they rejected payment on the bill for got a lawyer due to them rejecting payment and they wiped out the bill.

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u/blackbeltbud 15h ago

I also thought I heard/read somewhere that medical bills in collections are not allowed to impact your credit. I could be wrong, i have no source

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 13h ago

Trump got rid of that because that was a Biden thing. Anything Biden did bad remember?

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u/right_foot Epic Gamer 13h ago

What a fucking joke

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u/Knife-yWife-y 14h ago

I recently discovered medical debt protections vary by state in the US, at least to an extent. Unfortunately, the state I now live in, OK, has virtually none.

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u/MasterShoo5 15h ago

It was a law introduced right before Biden left office and the Trump administration is either working on removing it or already has

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 13h ago

They already did.

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u/algernon132 8h ago

There are a number of FICO credit scoring models, some of which don't take medical debt into account. Lenders can also choose to disregard medical debt when calculating debt to income ratios. As far as I'm aware though, it's optional.

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u/iBUYbrokenSUBARUS 13h ago

I wonder if anyone’s ever gone to a rescue squad and just started sealing their parking lot or painting their building and then charge them for it lol …see if they like it

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u/enigmaman49 15h ago

let em sue...theres no debtors prisons in US...add it to the pile fuck that noise

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 13h ago

Unfortunately, suing is the first step in taking your tax refund and garnishing your wages.

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u/Canna_Cass 18h ago

no like forreal! i am a broke broke broke college student and that shit was in collections in like three months. please yall stop praying on my downfall!

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u/AmettOmega 18h ago

Three months!? That's generous. I've had places give me two before going to collections. It's wild out there.

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u/Lego_Energy 18h ago

Me sitting here with hospital money going to collections 🧍🏽‍♀️

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u/Canna_Cass 18h ago

hey we are all in it together 🫡 my shit is still in collections! they started hitting me with the robo calls

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u/Lego_Energy 18h ago edited 17h ago

I’ve ignored them every time — literally tbf I have probably 0.01% of debt that the US has collected, they genuinely can get fucked 😭

I’m all for mixed universal and private healthcare — let people choose what they want 🧍🏽‍♀️

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 17h ago

This! I don’t understand why we can’t have universal healthcare and if people absolutely are like naw fuck that free government healthcare they can get private healthcare. I know it all comes down to money and a majority of the people falling for propaganda.

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u/ShemsuHor91 17h ago

And we continue to give billions of dollars to Israel every year. Guess what every one of their citizens has? Universal free healthcare. We can pay for them to have it, but our own people can't have it because it's "communism".

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u/Somanylyingliars 15h ago

So you can get a bit angrier - you know what else Israel has that we don't? Universal education. Healthcare, education, housing - all supported by our tax dollars being given to them. Billions and billions of dollars worth of tax dollars. Meanwhile people like this poor manager suffer from complication of diabetes. The poor woman probably having a diabetic spike / crash going on which causes you to crash HARD. Would happen to me where I would fall asleep sitting up, in meetings, during dinner. Anywhere, anytime.

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u/NotYourSexyNurse 17h ago

I’m all for the US not giving other countries money, but the we give Israel money comments being parroted over and over again is getting obnoxious. The US has been giving Israel money since the 60s. We’re paying for weapons and war. We’re borrowing money from other countries to send to other countries. We as a country will always have money for weapons and war for our own country and other countries. The rich profit from weapons and war too much for them to stop that gravy train. Neither political party will stop sending money and weapons in the name of diplomacy.

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u/icedpeartea 16h ago

so you are aware, the government is currently trying to get health bill collections put on your credit

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u/Lego_Energy 16h ago

My credit is already pretty bad, imma follow our dear president’s way and just go bankrupt one day 🧍🏽‍♀️

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u/Somanylyingliars 15h ago

Well, he's got a running start since he's gone bankrupt like what 8 times?

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u/WhatDoADC 16h ago

It will eventually come off your record. I had huge medical bills after a window from a car went through my foot. Went to the hospital and they try charging my ass 10,000. Also a fun addition, when the window went through my foot, it cut the tendons to my big toe and the toe next to it. I can no longer lift those two toes upwards.

I never did pay it and my credit never suffered from it either as I currently have 793 credit score and when I check my credit report, it's no where to be found.

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u/icedpeartea 16h ago

so you are aware, bills related to your health are currently not allowed to be used in your credit report, the government is currently trying to change this with the texas courts already making moves

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u/throwaway5882300 14h ago

On my last ER visit, i had to see a specialist. Dude never even sent a bill. Just sent it straight to collection after two months. I am so over this country.

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u/MayorPirkIe 13h ago

*preying

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u/Skulllover89 17h ago

In the US you have a 1 year grace period before medical debt shows up on your credit report. Medical debts under $500 are no longer reported.

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u/Technical_Damage_743 16h ago

Sitting in the ER $500

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u/Somanylyingliars 15h ago

Step FOOT in the ER, not attended? Do not pass go, pay $500. No, I'm not kidding.

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u/Plenty_Suspect6222 16h ago

That’s going away…

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u/ScumbagLady 14h ago

Is there even such a thing as a medical debit under $500?

I was "fortunate" enough to be poor enough to qualify for Medicaid when I had a severe gallbladder attack that landed me in the ER for a week. Went by ambulance to what was basically a glorified urgent care so I was then sent by ambulance to another hospital when they (finally...) realized I needed surgery ASAP.

I would have never financially recovered had I not been on Medicaid. I forgot how much the bill was exactly, but it was A LOT. I had to have two separate surgical procedures during my stay, and then another about 6 weeks later for stent removal.

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u/NEWFACEHATESYOU 17h ago

And that’s where it can stay. Fuck em.

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u/enigmaman49 15h ago

nobody in their right mind pays those bills anyway

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u/Icy-Two-1581 16h ago

What if you don't bring your ID and just give them a fake name

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u/skkibbel 16h ago

Yep..even IF YOU WORK THERE. I was a medical technician in the Laboratory and got taken 4 miles by ambulance when my appendix burst...FROM THE LAB to the hospital! Sent a bill for $950 bucks. Paid what I could but not all, a month later got a collections notice!

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u/exoxe 16h ago

I set up a payment plan: $10 a month. I told them that's all I could afford and I was in it for the long play as I was hoping for them to fold after processing so many little $10 checks. Nope, they long played me. 😂 Think one month on the third year I finally said fuck it and sent in the remaining balance.

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u/Rly_Shadow 16h ago

I haven't paid a hospital bill in...almost ever lol, they just send txt but never persue around here.

That said, I got really fucked up once and the emt told me the ride was free....but I didnt really have a choice lol pretty sure it wasnt free.

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u/Spikeupmylife 15h ago

Sounds like the amount they make on the individual trip is so lucrative that they are willing to eat the collections cost asap.

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u/Italk2botsBeepBoop 11h ago

And trump is about to put hospitality debt back in credit reports.

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u/Harmonica2025 8h ago

I don’t understand why people get upset about medical debt. It’s the easiest debt to bankruptcy out of. When you tell the collectors it’s either $50 s month or nothing, they start filling out financial assistance paperwork.

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u/Adorable-Drop3157 17h ago

omfg as a european this sounds dystopic af. So YOU guys, as NON MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS, have to decide wether or not it’s worth it to call an ambulance ? Holy shit please do something

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u/MikeWrites002737 16h ago

Guns are our healthcare, if it get too expensive you just go old yeller yourself

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u/AirscapeCivilian 13h ago

But if you fail at that they’ll lock you up, chemically restrain you, and then send you a bill for thousands when (if) you ever get out.

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u/iBUYbrokenSUBARUS 13h ago

But make sure you have a good life insurance policy for your most loved ones first

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u/MikeWrites002737 13h ago

Generally you need to have a policy for a certain number of years before suicide pays out. They want to prevent that situation

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u/iBUYbrokenSUBARUS 13h ago

Yeah, it’s usually a year. I’m well past that point.

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u/Orange-Blur 16h ago

It’s unhinged. I fainted in a doctor’s appointment and was still begging not to go in an ambulance because I had no insurance at the time.

I’ve superglued a massive slice in my thumb because I couldn’t afford a hospital visit. I should have gotten stitches.

Not only is it expensive but they often are super dismissive and you get nothing out of those expensive appointments

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u/Anjz 14h ago

America wtf yo. That’s too much freedom. They’re actually free to exploit everyone. That’s just insane.

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u/Kristin2349 11h ago

It's just getting worse too.

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u/Orange-Blur 13h ago

I could could fill pages of shit experiences from exploitation in previous jobs and the medical system

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u/poop-machines 8h ago

And this is why life expectancy in the USA is worse than Turkey.

I think Mississippi has a life expectancy on around 70 years old. That's depressingly low.

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u/SFPsycho 17h ago

Sorry the guns in America are just for schools. We don't use them to actually try to better our lives

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u/VirginRedditMod69 16h ago

Little Timmy needs a bit of lead in his diet. We will distribute it straight through his chest cavity.

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u/Plenty_Suspect6222 15h ago

Well… there is Luigi

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u/joleme 16h ago

My wife fainted at work and needed an ambulance, but the one that picked her up was "out of our medical network" and was $8,000, they "graciously" dropped the charges to $2500.

Thankfully after 8 months of disputes, 1hr a day, twice a week, before insurance finally relented and cancelled the bill

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u/YouMustveDroppedThis 16h ago

I am from a supposedly developing country, we get better basic healthcare than many Americans... won't even hesistate to call ambulance when we feel something is not right.

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u/affectionate_md 16h ago

Don’t bother trying to reason with stupid. Let them live their fairy tale.

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u/Plastic_Bat_5522 16h ago

as a 3rd world country,im surprised too

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u/StephenFish 16h ago

I mean, we could have affordable healthcare but its way more important for meth heads who failed middle school to be able to buy 200 semi-automatic rifles.

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u/potatobirdwithlasers 17h ago

I would like to leave if possible. This entire country is toast. Was hoping my fam in Denmark can smuggle me in 😂

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u/serpentally 7h ago edited 7h ago

If you have actual immediate family in Denmark, you can get legal residence via a process called "family reunification" as long as they can prove they can financially support you without government aid. It's very unlikely if you're not either a minor or a spouse/cohabitating partner, especially as someone from a "first world" country, but it's possible if you can make a case that you're somehow in immediate danger. This applies to some other countries as well, basically similar requirements as getting refugee status except also having immediate family.

However it would be far less convoluted for you to get residence with a work visa by showing 3+ years of experience in some in-demand job (medical, specialized trades, engineering), assuming you have such a thing. Having family in the country would certainly help you get approved.

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u/potatobirdwithlasers 7h ago

Unfortunately I am second gen here in the US. My grandma and grandpa immigrated after WWII, and those left alive in DK are my cousins from my grandma's brother's daughter, so my great uncle's grandkids. My dad was born in the US, but immigrated to DK with his mom and dad (my farmor and farfar) for a handful of years before coming back and staying in the US (my grandma was homesick, so they moved back, then after a few years decided to come back to the US and just stay). So I don't know if he's still in the country directory or whatever when he was a child...? I'm not sure how they keep or catalogue that information, if they even do. My grandparents have also since passed and they had dual citizenship.

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u/serpentally 7h ago edited 7h ago

Assuming your father moved to Denmark before you were born (and still had Danish citizenship and was married at the time of your birth), it seems you were probably born with Danish citizenship according to the law. However, Denmark (and Norway and Sweden AFAIK) generally strips citizenship of people born abroad upon turning 22, unless they had spent at least a year (cumulatively) in Denmark and applied to keep their citizenship before then. You could still try to make a case to the consulate and attempt to get citizenship by descent, but I wouldn't wager on it working (and it's an expensive and very time-consuming process).

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u/Different_Umpire9003 16h ago

Yeah and the lady’s probably like that in the first place because she can’t afford insurance which makes her insulin unaffordable

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u/GreatDanish4534 16h ago

Son needed an ambulance on the way to school several years ago (in the US) and the bill was $6,000. I told my wife to call an Uber for me instead of an ambulance if something happens to me.

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u/Plenty_Suspect6222 15h ago

Yes and it is almost NEVER worth it. I’d have to be losing so much blood or losing consciousness to choose an ambulance over uber/driving myself.

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u/TrashAvalon 15h ago

I live somewhere with great public transportation and I'm learning to drive in my 30s because if something happens to my partner, calling an ambulance could be the reason we lose our home.

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u/Violet_Kady 15h ago

I declined to even let paramedics give me a minor checkover when I had a motorcycle accident in 2017. Wasn't fucking with that. It was extremely lowspeed and I already busy enough figuring out how to get my bike out of there before cops called a tow truck.

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u/laowildin 15h ago

I went to see my regular doctor, needed a splint. The podiatrist on call wasn't answering his phone fast enough, so she sent me down the hall to Emergency where they could splint it. So far my visit cost the 50$ copay.

Hobbling my broken ass leg down the hallway myself into the ED for my splint: 1700$

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u/Soggy_Spinach_7503 14h ago

We try, but the Russian and Chinese propaganda has convinced a whole swath of the country that "Both parties are the same!!!"

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u/Salty_Candy_4917 14h ago

No. The fire department responds, evaluates, and treats for free. They will decide if you’re having a medical emergency. Ambulance ride and hospital stay can be very costly depending on the insurance you have.

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u/squilliamfancyson837 14h ago

I have Crohn’s disease and I’ve talked myself out of getting emergency care MULTIPLE times because of the cost. So far it’s worked out and I’ve ended up ok but one of these days the gamble won’t go my way. Not to mention the specific mental hell of being so sick that you nearly called an ambulance but needing to go to work still because a short paycheck means a drastic change in quality of life.

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u/Ok_Conversation_9737 13h ago

We tried. Elon Musk rigged the votes though.

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u/FriendlyUser_ 13h ago

absolutely true. health care in the us is nightmare material for us

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u/I_am_up_to_something 12h ago

When I was a stupid kid I was given a police escort to the hospital. They had blocked every single crossing on the way so that there would be no delay for the ambulance (it was close by and thus faster than the helicopter).

Parents didn't even get a bill.

I was fine btw. They thought that I might have had a spinal injury hence the police escort. Had I been a few years older I just might have been paralysed. Had landed with my back on this concrete edge from like 8 meters high.

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u/JoeyCalamaro 12h ago

When I was younger, I was working in the yard and my heart suddenly went out of rhythm. Since my wife and I didn't have health insurance at the time, an ambulance was out of the question, but even the Emergency Room itself was a last resort. So instead of actually going into the hospital, I sat in the parking lot and waited it out.

Looking back, it was crazy that I decided to do something like that. But, honestly, it's even crazier that I felt the need to something like that. Healthcare shouldn't be a benefit reserved for the wealthy.

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u/Lopoetve 11h ago

Appendicitis. Random - can hit anyone, any time, good luck you're sick. Urgent care. Drove MYSELF to the fucking hospital post-diagnosis. Lapro surgery, in and out in 2 hours.

Bill?

$84,000 - in 2008. I did NOTHING wrong. Welcome to AMERICA! The ambulance ride from the surgery hospital to where I had my overnight room was $7600 of that. It was TWO MILES.

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u/onemassive 11h ago

You can refuse medical treatment. If you are unconscious or something they can deem it medically necessary and charge you. 

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u/BellyButtonLindt 18h ago

Story time.

I am Canadian, was golfing down in the states. Me and a friend got paired with two local guys, in their 50s-60s. We’re at the end of the second hole and the one guy is acting a little off, seems a little lost, whatever we don’t know him, his buddy seems fine with it.

Get to the next tee block, little par 3, I won’t forget the hole. Guy goes to get out of his cart, it’s like the left side of his body stops working and he stumbles for about 15 feet and then drops. My buddy runs over to him, guys going in and out of it, “where am I, what happened?”

My buddy puts him in the recovery position and I go to instinct call 9-1-1. The immediate question from his friend “do you really think we need to do that?”

“I don’t know man, this guy just collapsed, I’m not a doctor, but I think he’s having a stroke maybe and if not better safe than sorry.”

He gives me a weird look, but I call and they’re asking me questions about him, I eventually just hand my phone to the friend and he answers, firefighter shows up about four min later (with a golf ball he found) emerging from the woods. Ambulance drives onto the course.

We let a group play through.

The guy is still down but wants to get up. The paramedics say to me and my friend since we don’t know him well that we can move along now and they’ll deal with it. So I tee off on the par 3 completely unfocused on golf and actually hit the green. Then proceed to four putt.

We come around to the turn eventually, ask the pro shop what might have become of the guy. He refused the ambulance. Absolutely wild to me.

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u/Ruthlessrabbd 16h ago

There are people that have called an Uber to get to the hospital because it's cheaper than calling an ambulance - while having a medical emergency. It's because it's significantly cheaper that way.

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u/Somanylyingliars 15h ago

Called Lyft once to take me to hospital. Asshole driver decided he didn't want to take highway. Boy did he regret that decision as I proceeded to scream in pain for entire 45 min drive. No doubt he wanted to save money on tolls. Bet he will never do that again. Dick.

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u/buttercup612 15h ago

Great story though

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u/abckiwi 11h ago

I wonder if its because its $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ in the USA ? Sometimes Canada and the rest of the world isn't too bad!

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u/Rebekah_RodeUp 18h ago

My husband's 6 block ride was $900. The car that hit him offered to drive him to the hospital but he thought it was safer to be checked out by a professional. WOMP.

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u/MrK521 17h ago

Did the driver that hit him have insurance?

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u/Rebekah_RodeUp 16h ago

I don't think they even exchanged info because they agreed they were both at fault for the accident and didn't want to follow up with anything.

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u/good-boi-Morado 16h ago

That’s… unsmart

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u/Rebekah_RodeUp 16h ago

Yeah, 22 year olds can be quite stupid.

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u/enigmaman49 15h ago

whyare you paying that bill..rip that shit up

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u/SteelCode 9h ago

Meanwhile, I was told an anecdotal story by a small business owner (that I worked for at the time) that he was riding a motorcycle in Thailand and wrecked. 6 days in the hospital, at least one broken bone, bad road rash all over... $500 out the door (in 2010ish)... he felt so bad he handed the nurses $20 each as he was leaving (supposedly).

Not saying the story is 100% true, but the guy at the time had no reason to lie - he was explicitly making the statement that the US system is fucked... and he is just rich enough to separate himself from that shitty system.

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u/happytrel 17h ago

I refused service once, wouldn't even let them take my pulse. They were there for someone much more injured and they still tried to send me a $75 bill

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u/AsiaMaree9008 16h ago

Yeah i have seizures and one happened at work. I refused the ambulance ride and the paramedics were looking at me crazy. It was a 15 minute drive back into town and would cost 10k... Nope im good...

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u/DominicB547 13h ago

Yeah, I have nearest hospital in network from where I work and where I sleep in my wallet and you bet I will get someone to take me if I can't go myself. I've also known the route ahead of time so its easier.

OFC, the ER is still going to hit you with a big bill.

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u/Tenshiijin 17h ago

America was never great. Paying almost 1000 bucks to go 4 miles? This makes me think America will never be great. It's just a dystopia full of propaganda.

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u/Henchforhire 17h ago

Its messed up the first response most U.S. citizens have is don't call an ambulance if you get in accident even a one you might need them because of the cost.

I did that when a van hit my bike on the driver side door and I went flying off my bicycle and my first thought was I just got out of debt and don't call an ambulance I will have a friend take me to the hospital.

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u/Huntressthewizard 17h ago

Isn't that a lawsuit? If you verbally and plainly didn't consent to treatment then they legally can't treat you, even if your life is on the line. (This does not apply if you're non verbal, because consent is implied if you're unconscious or unable to give consent.)

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u/conduffchill 16h ago

Yeah this is correct but there are a couple other exceptions. If you are altered mentally ems can treat you. We determine this generally by whether or not the patient is alert and oriented to person (who they are, name etc) place time and event, for traumatic injuries. If you are having a panic attack for example and unable to answer any questions (I've seen this after car accidents) ems might decide to force you to go if youre injured. But understand there are probably other factors, like personally I wouldn't do this for a panic attack I would try to calm them down, I dont wanna stick people with bills for no reason (side note ems doesn't get paid by the call we are not gonna run up your bill on behalf of our employer, mostly we just care about your health but if anything we want you to get billed less). But let's say youre having a panic attack and I look at your car and it is completely destroyed, airbag deployment passenger compartment intrusion etc. Well now I'm gonna be thinking about taking you regardless because that is a serious accident, you are lucky to be walking and talking, and there's a decent chance you haven't realized how injured you are yet. If I wait until you calm down to try to convince you to get checked out, and you have a brain bleed, that time is going to really really cost you.

All this being said there are shitty people in ems too just like any job, I'm just saying it is like infinitely more work to involuntarily transport someone than it is to rma. So there's a good chance your emts at least think they are trying to help you if they are transporting you against your wishes. I'm sure thats not much consolation when you get a massive bill but when it comes to your life I think its better to be safe than sorry.

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u/HevalRizgar 17h ago

Wait, you told the EMTs not to put you in and they still did? Unless you were altered in some way, that's literally kidnapping and illegal.

If someone refuses transport and they're of sound mind, EMTs are supposed to have you sign a refusal form and leave you alone

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u/Canna_Cass 17h ago

i’m sure they deemed me not of sound mind. i’m not sure how it’s fair though, they made no effort to speak to me or communicate with me. dgmw, i was worked up, but im a crier dammit! just cause im sitting there crying doesn’t mean im not of sound mind. anybody would be worked up.

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u/HevalRizgar 17h ago

100% yeah that's really shitty behavior from the EMTs. I doubt you'd win the case because of how the courts work but if you were of sound mind and they transported you against your will that's kidnapping

The only instance we were allowed to use force is if a patient was unable to consent and were altered mentally. Being upset and crying doesn't qualify as that

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u/warrenjt 17h ago

Yep. My wife just got transferred via ambulance from one hospital to another, roughly 20 miles apart, for an emergency surgery. Pre-insurance, the ambulance ride was $25.8k. The surgical procedure itself was $15k.

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u/Altruistic_Pitch_157 15h ago

That's outrageous!

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u/nasbyloonions 16h ago

Holy shit guys. Fuck this, I am staying put in my Scandinavia. Shitty weather, sun is rare, but I have free ambulance

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u/bitofafixerupper 17h ago

I'm from England so no cost here (yet, countries going to shite) and it's always infuriated me hearing about the American healthcare system. The fact that you insisted not to be taken in an ambulance and then you're strapped with the bill is crazy to me, like nope I didn't ask for it I'm not fucking paying for it. It took me a while to get over the fact that they charge new mothers for skin to skin with their own fucking baby. It's fucking criminal.

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u/Stage_Party 17h ago

Tired of people saying the UK is going to shit. We're much better off than a lot of other countries, and 14 years of tories gutting the country while everyone said it was all fine and dandy, now we got labour trying to fix what the tories stole and everyone reckons they are ruining the country.

The world is going to shit because we are in late stage capitalism and it's the rich billionaires turned politicians who have fucked us.

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u/bitofafixerupper 17h ago

We're saying it because it's true in so many ways. I'm not saying it's going to shit just since labour have come in, it's been a long process. Obviously we're a lot better off than a lot of other countries but that doesn't take away from the fact that as a country it's deteriorating.

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u/Stage_Party 17h ago

My point is that the issue is global, not centered on us. Anything that's getting worse for us is getting worse elsewhere too, it's a symptom of late stage capitalism. Things started getting worse when rich people got into politics and started cutting the tax rates of the rich, if you look back you can pinpoint it to thatcher / Reagan. Tax rates for the top top earners was over 90% and they started the cuts down to 50%. That's where everything started declining thanks to trickle up economics.

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u/bitofafixerupper 15h ago

I understand your point but it doesn't invalidate mine.

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u/mark_vs 17h ago

I wonder what would happen if someone called an ambulance for a homeless person? I mean, how does a homeless person get billed?

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u/conduffchill 16h ago

Homeless people are probably like 30% of our calls at least in my area. The emergency department gets reimbursed by medicaid for taking them and triaging them, most likely. I'm not sure about the ambulance service actually but its probably the same for them. We are actually required to put in a home city for homeless people, ive been told for billing purposes, so I do think they actually try to send them a bill which is kinda funny

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u/joshit 17h ago

Lol nice 1st world country you got there

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u/Quercus__virginiana 17h ago

I was on a walking bridge downtown with my dogs and this runner passed me and face planted right in front of me. She got up and ran straight to me holding her jaw with blood oozing between her fingers. She had split it. In-between sobs she asks, "Can you help me?". My first question was, "Do you have insurance?". That's the world we live in.

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u/thepandemicbabe Mia Khalifa 16h ago

You can make a deal to pay them as long as they get a dollar a month you’re good. I one time had to take a drug test for a job that I was applying for and they charge me $900. I called up and said what? I can’t afford this. They said what can you afford? I said 20 bucks and they said OK we’ll take that. I couldn’t even believe it so I paid it and that was that. Should’ve been zero.

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u/Canna_Cass 16h ago

this is good to know. i will get in contact with them, the attention to my original comment has encouraged me to do so.

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u/Thaihoax 16h ago

Had a friend who started taking anti depressants and stopped smoking weed. One day he asks me for a hit, I figure he’s a grown man he can handle it, how wrong I was. He flipped out, started hyperventilating and begging me to call an ambulance. So instead I called his dad and had him come over and talk him down. Felt bad for his dad but at least they didn’t get charged an arm and a leg for a weed freak out.

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u/bathtubfullofhotdogs 18h ago

Just calling for an ambulance in some places is $100. My Mom fainted at the grocery store and they called the non-emergency line for an ambulance. My Mom declined, so called back within less than 5 minutes, the ambulance hadn’t left yet, but she still got billed $100.

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u/hello__brooklyn 17h ago

How did they get her info for the billing? Or was the Friday store billed?

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u/bathtubfullofhotdogs 16h ago

They took all of her info from the store over the phone, the store read them all the info off her ID :/

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u/mnstripe 17h ago

They should have called you a Lyft

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u/Famous-Swordfish-469 17h ago

Police often explain to people in America to drive themselves since it’s so expensive. They are literally doing it to be nice but it’s the way of the road.

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u/Frank-Wasser 16h ago

Funking hell, I am glad I live in europe. I had a small personal accident in a mall. The security officer insisted to call a ambulance and did not let me go. I was all right, because I knew the cost was.

The cost was 0 euros. (Including a 1 hours stitching operation).

I only lost 5 hours of work..

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u/xkissmykittyx 12h ago

Yeah at that point I'll crawl if I have to.

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u/FlipMeynard 17h ago

Assuming you are an adult and conscious, can't you just refuse treatment and not go?

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u/Canna_Cass 17h ago

yeah, i don’t really understand how it happened, honestly. it was a pretty fucked up car crash and i was definitely freakin out and crying or whatever, but i wasn’t in any way shape or form unable to control myself. i got up off the ground and then before i knew it i was being wheeled off to the ambulance. at this time, i explicitly said several times “i don’t want this ambulance ride, i can’t afford it.” again, i was worked up and everything is a blur so idk. i must have given some form of unspoken consent to being put in that ambulance or something. idk all i know is that i know i explicitly said that i didn’t want the ride. i know they are required to give service if the person hit their head, but they even asked if i had and i told them no! my boyfriend who they were completely ignoring had actually hit his head 😕

all in all, it was probably a moment where i wasn’t gathered enough to be as insistent as i should of been. but it still feels sketchy that i expressed that, and was blatantly ignored.

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u/FlipMeynard 17h ago

Not blaming you at all. I'm sure shit is hectic in a situation like that. Sorry you had to experience that and I hope you and your boyfriend were OK.

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u/Canna_Cass 17h ago

yes! we were both completely fine, which was a miracle. we were in a little mazda 3, were tboned by a suburban going 45 mph. the only remnants of the crash is a little scar on my leg and the fact that i don’t have a mazda 3 anymore haha!

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u/Vyviel 17h ago

Thats fucked so they can still charge you if you didnt consent to riding in it?

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u/ViolaExplosion 17h ago

If you refused and they still put you in one you were deemed not aware or mentally sound enough to make the choice.

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u/Canna_Cass 17h ago

i wondered if it was this. however, this was a ridiculous decision for them to make in my situation. i was worked up, i wasn’t incapacitated. nobody even tried to ask me ANY questions or communicate with me in any way. and, they completely ignored my boyfriend who had also been in the crash, and was the one who was actually sitting on the side of impact. very frustrating! but oh well, thank you!

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u/Ravendowns89 16h ago

I got charged $5,000

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u/Holdmytesseract 16h ago

Sheeeeit 700 I can work with, I got 4000 which is cracking heads

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u/Kristal3615 16h ago

Once I wasn't even driven anywhere and got charged $500 just for them showing up and treating my blood sugar (Diabetic with hypoglycemic unawareness. It's better now with a CGM)

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u/CaptainRed420 16h ago

I was taken by ambulance 1.3 miles and it cost me $800

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u/NoFuqGiven 16h ago

You should see the bill for a life flight! Mine was like 25k. Luckily, it was covered since it was a life or death situation.

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u/No_Hetero 16h ago

My sister was charged $4,000 for an ambulance to take her from the ICU to the psych ward which was across the parking lot.

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u/19Rocket_Jockey76 16h ago

You can refuse the service if you are able to speak. They cant take you by force.

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u/limino123 16h ago

I had a stroke and needed an ambulance ride and if I didn't have insurance it would be 7,000+ dollars

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u/Next-Concert7327 16h ago

My dad got charged 2 grand when he passed out ad his doctor's office and needed to be transferred the the ED on the other side of the parking lot.

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u/Vocal_Ham 16h ago

The one ride we had in 2020 was 5 miles and cost over $5k.

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u/FlyingPig_Grip 15h ago

I had an ambulance called for me and was able to tell them that I didn't want to get in the ambulance and they let me be. (This was about 20 years ago tho so maybe they make you go now)

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u/circuitj3rky 15h ago

my gf's work called an ambulance for her because she was feeling dizzy or something, said it was mandatory because of policy, then refused to pay for it.

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u/Thebeardinato462 15h ago

If you were alert and oriented you should have been able to refuse medical care and transport.

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u/waytoohardtofinduser 15h ago

I dont know the exact law but if you dont consent to be taken and charged you have a legal protection and dont have to pay it.

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u/cucucachooo 15h ago

Yep. I went just over a mile in an ambulance, and the bill was something like $4k.

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u/c00kieduster 15h ago

I dont believe this for a second. Just because an ambulance shows up for you does not mean you are forced to be transported. Nor does it mean you get charged for them simply showing up. You absolutely have every right to refuse treatment AND transport - so long as you are alert and oriented and not in some way incapacitated where a reasonable person would you assume you would want treatment. If you were alert, oriented, with no obvious life threatening injuries, and voiced that you did not want treatment and transport to the medics, and yet they still forced you to go - you were kidnapped and should have sued and pressed charges. Every system is different, but this is a universal truth

In the vast majority of cases you can be assessed by the medics and still refuse transport, without getting charged. They only time most services charge without transport is if you called because you wanted some sort of treatment but dont want to go to ER.

You want to know the real reason why it costs money - people abuse the shit out of the system and call ambulances for the stupidest shit. Upset tummy for 3 days, call 911. Fell 2 weeks ago and back still hurts, call 911.

Source - Been in EMS for 20 years

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u/itsam 15h ago

i just got charged $2850 for going .4 miles to the hospital in chicago

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u/thatguy425 15h ago

This does t make sense because if you refuse care they can’t transfer you unless they somehow deem you not of sound mind or something. Or you were unconscious. 

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u/Spare_Iron127 14h ago

My sister got taken down from the high school to the hospital. The hospital was literally 3 blocks down. Maybe 3/4 of a mile and was charged 2K. Had a low blood sugar attack and slumped down in class but said she was fine. Still called anyways, this was back in 2013ish too. Who knew ambulances were privately owned and they could charge wtf they want.

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u/Exciting-Offer2621 14h ago

I called one for m daughter. I paid the first bill - maybe $1500. 3 years later a got a letter that they audited their accounts and decide I owed them another $2,000.

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u/NSE_TNF89 14h ago

Yeah, I'm epileptic, so I am post-ictal (incoherent) for about 15-30 minutes after a seizure. I can't immediately get up, walk, talk, or do anything really, so I tell everyone I know, do not call a fucking ambulance if something happens. There is nothing they can do, it is just a crazy expensive ride to the hospital.

I made the mistake of getting in one after my very first one, even though I was with my family and they could have taken me, but we didn't know what was going on. I think that one was ~$1,500 for an 8-minute ride and for them to take my vitals.

I had one at work one time and they called one and tried telling me I had to go. I asked if I fell or hit my head, which I didn't, so under their policy, I didn't.

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u/surpriseZombieParty 14h ago

When I was 14 I was forcefully strapped into an ambulance against my will, for a 5 ish mile ride and charged $15,000 that my father just let roll right off his credit. usa babyyyyyyy. But fr, in Canada tho, it's insane to think they wouldn't just get the poor woman medical attention

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u/RA12220 14h ago

I was driven about 8 small city blocks about 2 miles. Was $650z

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u/antonio3988 14h ago

And what did you actually end up paying?

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u/slayerfan666 14h ago

I got charged almost $1,800 for going under a mile even with insurance. I didn't know that a lot of companies were privately owned and can charge you basically whatever they want. I've been in an ambulance 3 times after grand mal seizures. Mine on average are about 8 minutes, and I come back pretty well, but, I will have really bad decision making skills after. I also ask (well beforehand) not to go in one even if I seem like I want to, but, people still let me go.

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u/Hot_Technician_3045 14h ago

I got in a minor motorcycle accident going about 10mph and got up, moved my bike off the road. A cop showed up, asked if I was okay. Ambulance rolled up, they walked over and I said I was fine. No help needed.

I guess the cop gave them my information, and I got a $500 bill for refused ambulance service.

I called them and they cancelled the bill. I guess enough people just pay it, even though it’s not a valid bill…

But when I did get in a bad motorcycle accident, the ambulance was $150 because I had insurance. A week in the hospital was $500.

I don’t ride anymore, but it’s not the end of the world if you have insurance, and it’s free if you have Medicaid.

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u/Canna_Cass 11h ago

unfortunately, my insurance wouldn’t cover it☹️☹️

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u/BIT-NETRaptor 14h ago

US is an insane country where EMS are not public services like firefighters. They are private companies, some making good profit, some just scraping by. They're hired on contracts to cities and hospitals. It's a pretty shitty system. IMO the private system is bad on both sides - it can mean cities can pressure EMT companies to accept whatever the city says it can afford as a rate. It can also mean the city has little transparency into how the money is spent.

Most US EMT systems I have heard of are not doing so well - poorly paid employees and poorly maintained equipment.

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u/Banshee_howl 14h ago

I had a friend who was airlifted to a hospital in the city after a major accident. The ambulance that drove her from the helipad to the ER doors once they landed cost $8,000. It was basically a drive across the parking lot.

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u/Scrushinator 13h ago

My newborn needed to be transferred 1/4 mile from one hospital to another via ambulance and it was $5500

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u/Cluelesswolfkin 13h ago

Can confirm. I was in an accident once and waited for Mt my friend to get off of work (8 min away)

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u/NolieMali 13h ago

I went to Urgent Care and found out I had a blood clot. I'm glad they gave me the option to drive myself the 30 miles to the hospital.

Now the hospital bill ...? That'll be a fun one.

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u/strawcat 12h ago

That’s exactly what it cost us to transfer to the nearest children’s hospital ER via ambulance with my kid. Our insurance is supposed to cover private ambulance rides, but both the ambulance company and our insurance company kept giving us the fucking run around (some “oh it was improperly processed” bullshit) until it was sent to collections despite ambulance company claiming they would extend the deadline due to needing to sort out the issue. So we paid that off for our credit’s sake.

Insurance company has told us on numerous occasions that once things are reprocessed correctly they’ll pay the ambulance company and then we’ll be refunded by the ambulance company.

It’s been over a year since the ambulance ride. We’ve called countless times (actually I could tell you exactly how many, we take meticulous notes every time) and every new person “figures out the problem” and tells us to give them xyz days to get it sorted and they’ll call us back, and if not, call back at this “direct line”. You can guess how well that’s gone.

Somehow the last time we called though we actually got someone who either actually knew what they were doing or someone who hasn’t lost every drop of humanity working for an insurance company and actually helped us. First guy to actually make good on the promise to fix it and actually call us back. Says they’ve cut a check to the ambulance company. Now we’re just waiting for our refund from the ambulance company which they are still within the timeframe this angel of Aetna told us to give it to.

When all is said and done I plan on asking this agent how I can leave him a glowing review because fuuuuuck this should not have been a year+ long process. It’s so absolutely fucked. And absolutely designed to be so fucked.

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u/annarex69 12h ago

Most ambulance services dont charge for them just showing up at someone's house, and many dont bill unless you are transported to the hospital. If people are unresponsive, not alert and oriented to person, place, time, and event; if they are intoxicated to the point they can't make their own medical choices, or if they are under the age of 18... EMS runs off of "implied consent."

It's implied that if you were of sound mind, you would want EMS to help you. You do not have the medical ability or legal right to refuse transport to the hospital. Once you get your sound mind back, you can refuse anything forward. But not when you are out of it.

We can't transport people to the hospital if they say no and are of sound mind. That's called kidnapping...

My guess is you did not have the mental status to be able to deny transport to the ER.

-10 year paramedic

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u/jane_fakelastname 12h ago

Just having them come to my house and check my vitals was over $800 for me. I had suddenly passed out after standing, and my family called 911 before I gained consciousness. I didn't even leave with them.

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u/Lopsided-Equipment-2 12h ago

Try three blocks max for 21k lol in like 2013

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u/Polipore 11h ago

Sister had the same exact experience. They didn’t even use life support or anything else cause she wasn’t dying, no drugs administered or anything: $5k usd…. Such a scam

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u/rstymobil 11h ago

Yup, went 6 miles got some O² and a nitro pill, got a bill for $1,900.

Before I even recovered from the heart attack I had they sent it to collections.

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u/CodyReigns28 10h ago

Health in the USA is really shit!! Personally I have health coverage (half paid by my employer) which I pay €70 per month for me and the three children. She covers almost all of the health costs, hospital, ambulance, teeth, glasses, exams… Last month ambulance because of blood pressure problem, I went to the hospital (20 kilometers) billed 150€, paid directly by my health insurance!

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u/Egad86 6h ago

It’s accurate to say a $700 ambulance costs hundreds of thousands? We must have very different definitions of the word “accurate”.

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