I was charged 500 when I went to a walk in clinic for a steroid shot becauae I got an upper respiratory infection that got outta hand and when i went in I was so bad they thought I was having a heart attack and called the ambulance.
I'm gonna play devil's advocate here. Yes, ambulances are expensive, as are most things in America. But you can hear the other Paramedic saying "Police have deemed it necessary that we transport you." If a police officer places an individual in protecting custody, which would mean the person meets certain criteria that they are placed on a medical hold, meaning no, they cannot refuse. An example would be if the individual was actively suicidal.
Or they are suspected of a crime. For instance, an unconscious driver in a collision. They wanted blood alcohol and methamphetamine levels of the perpetrator. (They will also, sometimes, request other biopsies, even of passengers and victims, though that is extremely rare and may not be legal in some states)
You can obviously not decline treatment/transport if you’re mentally impaired or don’t understand why you need to see a doctor. They’ll take you in regardless if that’s the case
West coast usa over here, I jumped to conclusions and started yelling at my phone IT COST $3,000 HELL YEAH IMA REFUSE!.... But then I watched the rest of the video lol 😅 yep sounds abt right
I was literally forced by a cop who was escalating an entire situation to force me into an abulance while we literally just got off the phone with a Dr. of the hospital I was being taken to. It was absolute bullshit. Cops have no business interfering with a person and the ambulance on the scene. If there was a fatality in a wreck and you were involved, they do have to draw blood to see about any alchohol blood level, but they can do that on the scene. Fuck ignorant police douche bags.
Wrong and dumb, ask me how I know B. In order to refuse care, a patient must be legally and mentally capable of doing so by meeting the following criteria: 1… 2.. 3. Exhibits no evidence of altered mental status, including suspected alcohol or drug ingestion that impairs one’s ability to make a sound decision regarding medical care/transport. D. If the patient cannot legally refuse care or does not meet the criteria outlined in Section IV(B) above: 1. DocumentintheEHRtoreflectthatthepatientrequiredimmediatetreatment/transport and lacked the mental capacity to understand the risks/consequences of refusal (implied consent). Assessment findings should also be documented to support a decision to treat/ transport.
Here in Tucson, during "peak" hours, it cost my friend $7500 for an ambulance to take him one mile to a hospital that then gave him a $500 bottle of water and a $180 acetaminophen.
Capitalism, less taxation, more freedom of choice, insurance companies. You sort of get what you ask for. My old man had an allergic reaction down in Glendale, sent us a bill for $1800 just for an exam. Luckily we don’t have to pay the extortion fees in Canada so only cost $75 in admin fees.
It’s not as bad as when I was at a state fair cow show and one of my show mates had her steer in the grooming chute and a lady came up and went “Is that a pig or a cow.” I had to get up and leave because I didn’t want to laugh at this lady in front of her.
