Slightly less than a decade ago, medical flight bills would hover around $15,000 in the United States but today, they have doubled, averaging about $30,000. What’s more concerning is the fact that the calls for medical flight services have gone up drastically. Today, air ambulances are used by about 400,000 people annually in the United States. These numbers were released, last year, by the Accountability Office of the United States government.
The Reason Behind Spiraling Medical Flight Bills
It is believed that the cost of maintaining air ambulances has doubled in the same period. However, the reimbursements by government-aided insurance companies have remained unchanged. They cover about 58% of the charges only. Moreover, there are several pre-conditions that are put forth, failing to comply with any of these could result in lesser coverage or no coverage at all. The result – the patient automatically becomes responsible to clear these bills. Having said that, the patients virtually have no say in calling for the air ambulance services, so much so that they can’t even reject the call taken by the treating physician. If the patients inadvertently end up utilizing a medical flight service outside of their insurance network, they are sure to be hit by a huge medical transportation bill at some point.
Memberships and Legislation Can Possibly Help
The United States Congress is currently trying to modify certain laws that govern medical flight costs. If implemented, the citizens of the country might be alleviated of this burden. However, the bill has not yet been implemented.
Air ambulance memberships can offer some security. For a small fee, which could amount to about $100, people can opt for these memberships that cover entire families. In the event that members need to avail ambulance services, they can breathe free of any out-of-pocket costs. The amount that is not reimbursed by insurance companies is borne by the medical flight companies themselves.
