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I just got a bill from the Evanston Fire Department. They are charging me $400.00 to take me to the hos[ital!
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Well, unfortunately, $400 is a pretty good deal in the current ambulance market. You got an ALS response (a minimum of 2 paramedics, 1 and an EMT in some systems), probably an fire truck of some sort, and probably several police officers. That is the average response sent to a 9-1-1 call in major metropolitan areas. What you actually needed, based on your symptoms and what ended up being wrong with you was a BLS crew. Most major metropolitan fire departments do not hire EMTs, because they want to have an ALS response to ever call in order that they are able to handle any situation which may occur on scene or during transport.
My company, does the exact opposite, primarily because its job is to make a profit, whereas fire departments are going to continue to be around whether or not they make a profit as they are necessary services. As such, my company would probably send a BLS crew, which would have been appropriate for the call, but they would have billed you, at a minimum, twice what Evanston billed you just for the crew to show up at your door. Then there would be, in your specific case, an additional charge for taking you to the Emergency Department, a charge for mileage (rounded up, of course), a charge for the attendant to call the Emergency Department en route to inform them of your situation, and they would bill for any other services provided, like if they had to put you in the stair chair if the cot did not fit on your elevator or if the crew gave you oxygen or just anything else in the call they could possibly charge for.
Now, my company's response of a BLS crew would certainly have been appropriate, but for the price that you would have paid for it, you got an incredible deal from your local fire department.
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Good grief-that's awful! I can only hope that Medicare/Medicaid will pay the bill.
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Medicare/medicaid should pay you bill with no problem, specifically because you were admitted to the hospital. That shows that the ED visit, and in turn the ambulance ride, was necessary. But like any insurance company, you may have to give them a little prodding to do I job, I doubt it, though.
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I think that it will too. After paying the hospital bill, I still got a bill for 300.00+
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