A few weeks ago I was at the gym, felt light-headed after doing a hard set, so I lay down on the floor to recover. An employee comes over and I told him I'd be fine; I just needed to wait for my blood pressure to recover. He runs off and calls an ambulance, even though I told him not to. Ambulance comes, they say my blood pressure is low, so they're giving me an IV. I say I don't want it. They give it to me anyway. They tell me they're going to take me to the hospital; I say I don't want to go, but they put me on a stretcher and take me anyway. After the ambulance ride, they ask me to sign something. I say no, and I don't sign it. They take me into the hospital, where they draw blood and stuff, and a few hours later I'm cleared to leave. Some billing person asks me to sign something; I say no and don't sign anything. I get a cab back to my car. A week later I get a bill in the mail for 7k.

I don't have insurance. I get that everyone was just "doing their job," but I feel like I'm getting ****ed here. I don't feel that the penalty for almost fainting at the gym should be 7k in addition to all the **** they put me through. Is the fact I didn't sign any consent forms going to allow me to not pay this bill? I was never in serious danger; it feels like someone offering to clean your windshield, you declining, them doing it anyway and then charging you. This is 'merica, damn it, and I didn't sign ****. Tell me how to beat this.

Do like most uninsured, don't pay.

Run up a ton of credit card debt first, then declare bankruptcy.

Pretty sure no one forced you to take an IV or a ride to the hospital, pay for the services you got and wanted.

If the EMTs/Paramedics think that OP wasnt able to make sound decisions they can effectively force upon him service. I dont know if that was the case though.

So don't pay it.

7k? Really? lol merica

****'s expensive here.

unless i have a limb dangling off my body or am completely unconscious i wouldn't go to an american hospital. the fact that you could speak and allowed them to go pretty much sucks... you got to use every last bit of energy you have to refuse.

not sure about the credit card debt thing mentioned earlier since i've never been able to do such a thing in my life but it always seemed like if you could be remotely sneaky with that its worth it to do as a one off.

No way I'm declaring bankruptcy over 7K

That is why you run up another 30k in credit card debt, lump it all together and call it a day.

lol Murica

My health insurance would cover that and it only costs me $100 a month.

Guys like you are just so ****ing obtuse.

Apply for charity care. If you don't make a lot of money most of it will be written off.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using 2+2 Forums

sounds like a job for Obamacare

Did the same thing a gym once, and some dumbass claims I dropped the bar on my head or some other nonsense. The worker comes to me and I tell him I'm fine, just exhausted. I feel like I need to throw up, go in the bathroom for a little, but nothing.

Come out, fortunately no ambulance, but they make me sign something saying I refused treatment or whatever so they can cover their ass and describe what happened. Got a follow up call, that's about it.

LOL @ 7K for this. No chance I pay this if I can avoid it.

Yes you did - the forms for your gym membership. I bet there is something in there that states they can force you to do everything they did to you, at your expense... which is of course to cover themselves for insurance, lawsuit, etc. I would ask to take another look at the contract you signed. If there's a clause in there about what I mentioned, you're ****ed.

Thanks obama

The outrageous thing isn't that he went to the hospital but that the hospital is gouging him for so much money.

I tore up my foot in Cabo and I went to the hospital and got xrays + cast for $94. Think about how much that would have cost in rip-of-Merica.

Something seems to be a bit off in this story.

Ambulances get called and people refuse to go to the hospital all the time. They keep forms for this right in the damn thing. My boyfriend had to sign one after he was in a car accident. They "strongly advised" him to go, he refused, he signed, end of story. If you were conscious enough to talk you should have gotten out of going. Obviously weird **** happens, but this suggests TO ME that maybe you were so weak or altered mental status and they took you against your will, as it were.

The bill is obviously outrageous. Call the billing department and tell the truth - you have no insurance, you didn't even want to go to the hospital, you sure as hell aren't paying this much, so what can they do to reduce the bill seriously. They negotiate this **** all the time AFAIK.

Huge LOL at ever signing anything to refuse treatment after a traffic accident. Do they force treatment on you if you won't sign? Suspend your driver's license? Arrest you? Why would I ever sign something to help cover someone else's ass if there's no benefit to me? Signing a statement that says you accept treatment makes perfect sense, not the other way around. What a backwards-ass country.

I work in EMS part time. it really depends on the circumstances, if altered mental status or something like that yes the police can take you into custody and force the patient to go to the hospital.

Honestly if I get to a scene and a potential patient really doesn't want to be bothered, I just mark it down in my paperwork as "no patient found" and be on my merry way.

OP was semi-conscious and his memory of the entire thing may be distorted.

If you really feel you had the capacity to make decisions and that you were transported and given an IV against your will then sue for assault. Otherwise do what others said and negotiate it down.

move to Canada