Passenger Injured - "Please Don't Call Ambulance"

From this Boston Globe article, it appears this passenger was seriously injured while alighting an Orange Line train:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2018/ ... story.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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...When a 45-year-old woman’s leg became caught in the gap between an Orange Line train and the platform Friday afternoon, she was in agony. The cut on her leg went down to the bone.

Beyond her pain, she had another fear. Shaking and crying, she begged people not to call an ambulance. “Do you know how much an ambulance costs?” she wept.

Her fellow passengers rushed to her aid. One man stood behind her so she could lean on him. Another passenger placed a cold bottle of water to her leg. And at least 10 people pushed on the car together, moving it just enough for the woman to pull free, according to a video of the accident the MBTA released Monday.

I learned of this incident from a New York Times editorial appearing today:

http://nytimes.com/2018/07/02/opinion/b ... -care.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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..Health care is a complicated problem, one exacerbated by the gridlock in Washington. But the trade-offs that everyday people are being asked to make, the calculations they are being forced to undertake in the scariest of situations, suggest that far too many of America’s politicians have placed too little value on the well-being of its citizens. Nothing will change until their fellow citizens step into the ballot box and insist on something better.

Speaking as an emergency services member, if I had been there off-duty, I would have called for EMS anyway, despite what the woman was saying. It was obvious that she needed EMS level of help. I don't think anyone has ever gone to jail in this country if they were not able to pay the bill for an ambulance call. And I would have tried to explain to the woman while waiting, that getting her immediate help was the most important thing; and deal with the bills later.

Some incidents are minor and sometimes a person can be driven by to a hospital by a responsible friend or family member, if they want to avoid the hefty charge for an ambulance. But it seems that in this case the injury was serious enough that there really was no realistic choice other than an EMS call.

Going to jail for not paying the bill for an ambulance. No, that doesn't happen.

Though I have heard that not being able to pay that bill has resulted in people going homeless. Not being able to pass that credit check trying to move a to a new apartment a year or two later and everyone rejecting their application due to the massive past due red flag.

I really hope to see something in my lifetime that is a universal healthcare system so things like this are not a issue.

Edit:

Also to add, when you call an ambulance you can't shop around. Your health insurance might cover that ambulance ride as far as you are aware, but the outfit that responded / provided that ambulance service could potentially be "Out Of Network" for your insurance, resulting in the claim being denied and you having to foot the entire bill. Things like that should be illegal, especially in emergency situations. The same happens when people go to the ER. Boom, the ER doctor is Out Of Network in a In Network Hospital. Guess who's not covering that bill. You guessed it, your insurance.

The County government where I live does bill for ambulance calls, but they only collect what they are reasonably able to. They don't go after anyone who is unable to pay; just collect whatever they can without legal action. And the actual ambulance service is provided by the county govt, not any private providers, so it should be covered by health insurance as a 911 ambulance call. Interesting angle about the credit reports though. I hadn't thought of that.

Obviously, both The Globe's reporter, who appears to "not exactly" be of the "Cub" varietal, and The Times' Editorial Board, are more concerned about the social issue than they are about any delays the "T" or its riders experienced. Evidently the two immediate respondents are also of same mind.

This incident reminds me of one I personally experienced overseas in Salzburg during '15. On a quite hot day (yes, even in the Alps, it can get hot), at age 74, I decided to hike up to the Festung, or a fortress guarding the city since Medieval times (open any Salzburg site if you want to see it). There is a funicular up to the top that the tourists by and large use, but I didn’t want to spend the €11 for such, so I hiked.

I made it, but was very light headed. I never went down, but I grabbing on to a railing. Someone called the "Rotes
Kreuz", and they responded with a European siren blaring. By the time they got there, I had revived, but I said to them, "I think you're looking for me". Well, this "10+ knockout blonde who spoke perfect English" paramedic, interviewed me, and took my vitals. BP was something like 95/50 (measurement same as over here). She said "Low but good enough; next time ride the Tram".

Now the fun part; she wants ID. I cough up my Passport and Driver's license. She starts writing, and I say "I suppose I'm going to get a bill for 500 Euros for this".

Now she says, and getting in a "jab" at our health care. "Mr. Norman, health care is a right here in Austria".

That was that; I walked down the trail and the two miles back to my hotel without further incident.

Boston EMS - ambulance service - is a city department, not a private for-profit company. The injured woman maybe was brought to nearby Boston Medical Center which used to be Boston City Hospital until the City finally realized it could not afford to operate a hospital.

Unfortunately the persons helping out in this situation were ordinary laypersons and may have overlooked some fine nuances and as a result the woman may have suffered additional injury during the rescue.

If they were trying to rock the train back and forth to free the woman's leg, they may have been able to pull her leg out a little during the back but more injury may have occurred during the forth. It would have been desirable if they had found some object to wedge into the gap to keep the gap from closing intermittently.

She might not have been close enough to bankrupt to keep an ambulance company from chasing after her for $4500. including finance charges for that $3000. ambulance ride.