GeoffM

Never quite worked this one out, but if you call 911 and ask for an ambulance, do they just send any ambulance nearby? I think the call centres are managed by the local authorities or state or whatever, but who manages the ambulances? Around here they don't seem to have labels saying "XYZ hospital".

Presumably then they take you to the nearest facility? Our health insurance's nearest ER is nearly an hour away (only outpatient facilities up here) but there are a couple of other hospitals minutes away with ERs. Do they stabilise you and then transport you to "your" hospital if necessary?

I would ask about costs but maybe that's a minefield. For example, I know that my coverage is $100 fee for an ER visit unless admitted and same again for the ambulance I think, but if you need to be taken from a non-network hospital to their own one, I don't know how the costs add up then! So I don't expect somebody to explain it unless there's a general case...

Cheers

Lion in Winter

In Illinois, the first thing you get is Fire Department paramedics either on a fire truck or in a fire dept ambulance. Never seen private ambulances out on an emergency call. They will take you to the nearest ER, and if "your" hospital is close they will take you there - they aren't going to drive for an hour though.

AmerLisa

That's how they work in that the paramedics will haul you to the nearest ER (and by god you better be pretty sick) and then they will either send you home (in which case you'll be getting the full bill as well) or they will stabilize you and transfer you to your insurance hospital. Or if your insurance hospital contracts with the hospital you're already in, they'll leave you there.

Our of out of network costs are usually 80% (in network is 90) but for our insurance I think all hospitals are in network. If you've got something like Kaiser or Group Health then it's usually very different.

Mummy in the foothills

I've called ambulances many times for patients I had who need to go to hospital, many did need the paramedics/fire department, life support type situations. The only way here to not get the fire department paramedics first is to say you don't need first responders, they send the first responders when it's immediately life threatening, like a heart attach or unable to breath well. For many of the patients I called for it was worsening of their condition needing an emergency room visit and hospitalization but not needing life support of any kind. Then they would haul them off to the nearest hospital that was accepting patients (ER was open)

GeoffM

Thanks all - it's Kaiser. I think they use ambulances up here as I've seen far more of those than FD trucks or FD ambulances (I did see one a couple of weeks ago in LA somewhere).

GeoffM

I was wrong - it's $150. waived if admitted, but can't find reference to transportation.

On the positive side, I was saving for the snip and it turns out it's covered 100%, no copays or anything. Guess it's cheaper for that than a pregnancy for the wife!

Bink

When I called one for my Mum in Florida the Fire department responded initially and dealt with her in the first instance, then a private ambulance turned up and took her to ER.

lansbury

Part of the reason I changed my insurers was they removed my local hospital from their network. The nearest in network ER would have then been 7 miles away.

GeoffM

It is a bit of a PITA but I was having trouble getting any insurance, so at that point beggars can't be choosers! I'm self employed with pre-existing. With plans as they are we might be moving nearer there with wifey working at that hospital so it might actually turn out well.

PITA as we've got to go down tomorrow as DD turned one year old a month ago and isn't up to the prescribed weight (supposed to be 3x birth weight; born a week late at 9 lbs 5, now 17lbs 6, eating everything in sight, albeit filling a nappy 3x a day, thundering around the house, and very happy, but what do we know). So we have to see a nutritionist - they sent a food diary but we ran out of room because she ate so many different things.

Bob

Depends all on where you are.

Where we are, there's a couple of private ambulance services. If you call 911, you get who ever is nearest and they take you to the nearest hospital, not one you specify.

This is why it's not a good idea calling for one if you're about to have a baby as you might not end up in your hospital.

Then it's all a case of how your ER deductible works, with us, different rate to the hospital tied to our PCP compared to local hospital. There's a different co-pay if you're admitted over night or not. Cost of ambulance, depends if you end up being admitted over night or not, or if your doctor refers you to one, then you don't pay, other wise last time I checked it was a $400 call out fee.

It was pretty similar to this last place we lived in Maine, but the previous place to that, the town ran it's own ambulance service and they didn't charge town residence a call out cost, but would for those who weren't residence of the town, a lesser rate for nearby towns compared to folks out of the area.

ALBRUZ

Called an ambulance in Florida about 2 years ago as I nearly cut the end of my finger off whilst working on the garage door. I was in the house by myself and blood was gushing everywhere so a bit of a panic situation

They turned up poured a bit of peroxide over my finger and carted me off to the emergency room which was 12 miles away.

Ended up with a bill for $746 dollars for the ambulance for 15 min transport work (Not bad work if you can get it)

If it ever happens again I will be knocking on the neighbours door to take me to emergency clinic


Regards

Aln

Mummy in the foothills

7 miles is very close here Our nearest is close to 20 miles and after that it's 45 miles. They use life flight a lot.

Bob

It's like that where the in-laws live....the town splits the cost with The Loaf...it's still about a $10K to call the chopper out

Noorah101

We live in Phoenix, but on a recent visit to Lake Tahoe, hubby stepped barefoot onto a rusted piece of metal in the sidewalk and had blood gushing out. We weren't near the hotel, so we called 911. They sent an ambulance and paramedics who got the blood to stop gushing and then took us to the nearest ER. After 3 hours in the ER, they decided he didn't need stitches and that his tetanus shot was up to date, so they sent us back to the hotel (we paid for the taxi back to the hotel).

Got three separate bills...one from the hospital ER, one from the ambulance service, and one from the fire department (that must have been the paramedics). We have UnitedHealthcare through my employer, and it paid for everything except the $100 deductable for the ER visit.

Well, the insurance EOMB says they paid everything. The ambulance service says they haven't been paid and keep sending past due notices. I told them I have proof that the insurance paid (the EOMB) but they said not to fax or email it to them...yet they keep sending past dues...so I need to sort that out.

Rene