A US citizen has shocked social media users after sharing a bill their mum received after getting an air ambulance to hospital, with some people saying they would ‘rather die’.
Posting on the Mildly Infuriating subreddit, the user shared a snap of the bill which reveals the staggering charge.
They explained how their mum was driven to the hospital but it didn't have the right equipment to treat her minor stroke so she was flown in a helicopter to a second hospital.
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The bill shows a charge of $54,740 (£45,196) for ‘rotary wing air transport’; $41,348 (£34,139) for ‘rotary wing air mileage’ and $821 (£677) for ‘all other charges’ bring the total up to an eye-watering $96,909.37 (£80,001).
Alongside the photo, user Big-COUNTRY12 wrote the caption: “My mom was flown to another hospital in a helicopter and this is how much it costs?!”
The post has since received more than 50,000 upvotes and a flood of comments from people who can’t quite believe the amount.
One wrote: “I'd rather be dead than have to live on the streets ‘cause of a flipping medical bill breaking me!”
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Another said: “Something's seriously wrong when you end up bankrupt or beyond for just emergency medical transport... I can only imagine the nightmare bill from the ER just to be sure to wipe out retirement savings too.”
While someone else commented: “Cheaper dying! What a rip off. How can people live in the US with that sort of medical corruption?”
A fourth person joked: “If they showed me the bill mid flight I would have jumped out.”
A fellow US citizen sympathised: “I tore my Achilles on top of a mountain one time on dry ice had a 8500 foot dissent but still walked the full way and made my injury worse just so I wouldn’t have to pay that.”
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In a follow-up comment the original poster explained: “My mom was visiting family in a smaller town and had a minor stroke. She was driven to the hospital but they unfortunately did not have the right equipment to take on her minor stroke and she was flown in a helicopter to a hospital about two hours away. My mom unfortunately did not have insurance at the time.
“Thank you to the people who reached out to me personally for giving me advice! I'm going to be reaching out to the hospital to see if we can get any assistance on this bill and see if our state has any other help.
“To the people that say this bill is okay. Both of my parents' incomes combined is nowhere near this amount. How is this okay and not an issue in the US?”
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Claire Reid