EMS Bill

Over the weekend, I received the bill from the EMS company for my ambulance trip to the emergency room in October. It’s $1916.80. The trip was 4 miles, according to that bill. They charge $30.70 per mile for the actual transport. The rest, $1794, was for “ER Assessment”, whatever that is. I mean, sure, the EMT did check me out at the scene, for like 10 minutes. Is almost $1800 a fair price to pay for that?

It’s really no wonder that stories of people carrying cards that say “Do Not Call Ambulance” proliferate on the internet. As best I can tell, those stories are apocryphal. That said, I certainly don’t have that kind of cash just lying around to send to this private ambulance company. And before you ask, this is who responds when 911 is called to provide care after an automobile accident. The Atlanta FD responded, and the ambulance is operated by American Medical Response. A lot of people don’t realize these services have been privatized throughout a major portion of the United States.

The healthcare industry in the United States is maddening. The cost of that 24 hour ER stay is now over $60K. No, it’s not all my responsibility. But as best as I can tell, this nearly $2K for the ambulance is my responsibility. Worth noting also, that $60K doesn’t include the follow-up visits, testing, and ongoing care for the apparent diagnosis of epilepsy that came out of that incident.