I hope they hold her until the cows come home. She can't break out a credit card? loser!
- Thread starter DR fan1990
- Start date
Tourist held hostage at Punta Cana hospital
WHAT?? $460 for 20 minutes, those are USA prices.
Is it because it's Punta Cana that they hike everything up and charge gringo rates over there?
If you live or spend a lot of time here you should get Dominican Health insurance. When you walk into a private clinic here with DR Insurance they cannot and will not rob you. The Insurance company will not stand for it. No insurance you risk the "Gringo Price".......................
You must be NEW to the DR .. or just not paying attention
. The IV drip is THE WAY they KEEP you Prisoner til you pay
... they even do it with CHILDREN .
The IV needle does not come out until you pay your Bill the Bill in Full ..
I have seen it with my own eyes and discussed it with Dominicans .
The news story says that she flew in to spend her 61st birthday in Punta Cana, trip was supposed to last only 7 days, but right before her flight back to Canada she went into some medical emergency and had to be hospitalized.
And it says that she did purchase a travel insurance prior to the trip. But for a couple weeks after the medical incident, the travel insurance company (Blue Cross) kept asking her to send them documents to determine her eligibility for coverage (while the hospital bill kept increasing because they wouldnt let her go).... only to then deny her coverage over a "pre-existing medical condition".
In the video she is saying : "I can't stay here any longer, I'd rather die, get me outta here!".
She's not French, she's a Quebecoise.
I watched the report.
Two things...
They do show a photo of Hospiten as representing the clinic where she is. (Perhaps Sky has inside info that she is in IMG)
They did have the good grace to invite a guest who brought some common sense to the discussion.
As he explained, the issue of "pre-existing conditions" is far from a novel one.
Anybody who has such a condition would have to be up front and honest with the insurance company in order to be assured coverage.
Failing to do so falls on their shoulders and they should not be surprised when forced to take accountability.
Btw...
To be clear and for the record
TVA Nouvelles is NOT a scam operation.
Pre-existing conditions has a wide range in the insurance world. What a person might not think is a pre-existing condition, an insurance company will. Especially after being treated and incurring a large hospital bill. Also, some people do not read the fine print on the policy. 3 weeks on an IV for something like an infection (if that is what the issue is) is not "abnormal". But a lot of times that can be done at home with an infusion company. Unfortunately, as a tourist who was visiting that is not possible. IMO when traveling always be prepared for anything that might happen, including an illness emergency.
so she travels to P.C for an international vacation and gets the media involved to assist her in skipping out on her bills. The news feed should read "scam artist exposed". It is almost as bad as that loser who claimed she was beaten by a hotel employee several years ago to get out of paying her bill.
Many travel health insurers that sell policies online or as part of an airline/trip ticket purchase are what are known as post-claim underwriting. This means that the insurer will go over your medical records after you file a claim to make a final determination of whether the policy holder will qualify for healthcare reimbursement. A medical file with notes about any number of symptoms and tests can lead to a determination of having a preexisting condition which your policy probably excludes outright - no money for you...
I am truly surprised we don't hear more stories like this more often.
I am truly surprised we don't hear more stories like this more often.
Apparently , in Canada, EVERYTHING IS FREE ... and grows on trees .. and she wanted to bring some of that to the DR ? ..
I agree, what a mess. PAY your BILL... Be Glad they Treated you and you are Alive ..
Funny how people would never think of Skipping out on a Restaurant Tab, but somehow they think the Hospital should be FREE..
Free does not exist ,, Someway somehow , Someone HAS to pay it ..
her bill is not 100,000 "dollars" not even 10,000 dollars, this gypsy was vacationing in P.C. She has a can of peanuts next to her hospital bed, so I guess we know she does not have a gastrointestinal issue. She thinks she can wait them out until they cry uncle and say just get out. Loser!!
My experience at Bournigal in Puerto Plata tends to indicate the opposite.
When I used my US insurance there, in spite of the fact that it allows direct billing to the company and the hospital administration had agreed to direct bill in lieu of my paying upfront, the nurse questioned the removal of my IV "porque tu no has pagado la factura." Clearly, the IV is used to keep patients in the hospital.
She was overruled and I left the clinic without handing over one peso.
I worked at the Travel insurance dept. of Blue Cross years ago when I lived in Canada, basically when people called in to purchase their insurance, we'd have to ask them a list of questions about their medical/disease history, and if they answered YES to any question pertaining to any pre-existing condition, we'd often have to tell them 'Sir/Ma'am, YOU WILL NOT BE COVERED IF THIS MEDICAL ISSUE EVER RE-OCCURS during your trip/vacation".
Was heartbreaking (no pun) to tell elderly couples that they won't be covered for potential heart attacks while vacationing in the South. Some had to cancel their trip as a result. They didn't want to take any chances to be left stranded abroad.
Also, almost ALL callers over 55 years of age were on some type of high blood pressure medication. They would all answer YES to "are you on HB medication?". Pretty much everyone over 55. That baffled me as I didn't realize it was such a widespread condition.
AND if they didn't truthfully answer the questions AND later had an episode while at destination AND it was further discovered
that, in fact, there had been pre-existing conditions...
The insurance company would wash their hands.
The patient in question would be screwed.
It appears as though that might be what has happened in this case.
In the long run, dishonesty doesn't pay.
that, in fact, there had been pre-existing conditions...
The insurance company would wash their hands.
The patient in question would be screwed.
It appears as though that might be what has happened in this case.
In the long run, dishonesty doesn't pay.
I wonder how these things are even legal in 2023. Then I remember this is the DR and its a different world.
I guess we're really not in Kansas anymore.
Worse than American prices. I was estimating $200 USD before I walked in. It was an absolute joke. Billing company for them was American if I recall correctly.