Ont. senior has $220 ambulance fee waived after family complains

Family upset over $220 ambulance bill An Oakville senior was charged $220 to take an ambulance from an Oakville hospital to her long term care home just minutes away.

A senior living on a fixed income will no longer have to pay a $220 fee for an ambulance transfer of less than a kilometre after her family complained to the hospital.

Last month, Norma Myles fell out of her bed at a long-term care facility in Oakville, Ont. After a brief stay at the Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, the 83-year-old woman was transported in an ambulance back to the home, located less than a kilometre away.

“You could actually see the home from the room my sister was in at the hospital,” Sandra Myles, Norma’s sister, told CTV Toronto on Tuesday.

A few weeks later, Norma’s family was shocked to receive a bill in the mail with a $220 charge for the ambulance transfer.

“How can they warrant charging a subsidized senior $220 for an ambulance drive?” Sandra asked.

Because ambulance service in the province is typically covered by the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), patients are charged a co-pay fee of $45. However, if the transportation is deemed not medically necessary, the charge can be as high as $240.

Norma’s daughter Audrey Gates said she believes the ride was necessary because her mother has a catheter and isn’t steady on her feet. She said she expected a bill for the ambulance ride, but not one that high.

“After she pays her initial monthly invoice from the home, she’s only got maybe $200 or $300 left and this is $220,” Gates said. “It doesn’t leave her much.”

Ambulance fees are put in place to discourage residents from abusing the system, according to Dr. Eric Hoskins, the province’s health minister. However, hospitals have the ability to waive the charges in certain circumstances, he said.

“Hospitals themselves retain those funds so they have the ability, and they do regularly, waive those funds for individuals that they feel is unaffordable,” Dr. Hoskins said.

That’s what happened in Norma’s case. The Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital waived all of the fees associated with the ambulance ride, including the $45 co-pay charge.

Although Norma’s family is relieved she won’t have to pay the fee, Ontario NDP leader Andrea Horwath said the bill shouldn’t have been sent in the first place.

“If you need an ambulance, you should be able to get an ambulance and it shouldn’t mean opening up your wallet to have to pay for it,” Horwath said.

Each hospital deals with these cases on an individual basis, but staff at Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital reminded patients to carefully check their bills and to contact them with any questions or concerns they may have.

With a report from CTV Toronto’s Heather Wright