Winnipeg man dinged $206 for 10 minutes of oxygen in ambulance

A Winnipeg man says it is ridiculous that a collection agency is currently chasing him for a City of Winnipeg ambulance bill he didn't know existed until last week—all for a service he didn't realize came with a charge. 

"I hate to use the word cash grab ... but that's what it seems like," Robert Groce said, adding he feels "duped".

The bill came following a Stradbrook Avenue building evacuation at the end of January. The city said the evacuation was due to carbon monoxide.

Emergency crews—including an ambulance—were on the scene. Groce says he felt light-headed and a fire-paramedic official approached him. 

"He said... 'it's probably a good idea for you to get checked out.... There's an ambulance there, they can take care of you, you just go knock on the door.'"

Groce said he received oxygen for about 10 to 15 minutes. He was not transported to hospital.

Almost eight months later—Groce said a collection agency called his mother about a $206 Winnipeg ambulance bill.  

Groce said he moved before the March 13 invoice was issued.  

"Lots of expletives," Groce said when asked how he felt when he realized the source of the charge. "How is this fair? How is this just? Like, how can you be charged for something that you didn't ask for, that you didn't have an opportunity to say 'yes' or 'no' to in terms of the cost of it?"

The city says paramedics need to focus on patients' needs during emergencies—not their pocketbooks—and that the costs are available online and in a publicly available document.

Groce said he understands being charged when transportation to a hospital is required, but in this case, he said he feels like he is "getting screwed."   

"Nobody told me that this service was going to cost me money," said Groce. "If they had, I would have simply went to a walk-in clinic or to the urgent care." 

Cost over care a concern, union says

That part of Groce's story concerns the union representing city paramedics, the Manitoba Government and General Employees' Union (MGEU). 

"It would be a concern," says MGEU president Michelle Gawronsky. "You could pass out on the drive down."

Gawronsky added people should always put their health first, "When cost becomes a factor for folks, whether they're going to seek or use ... medical care then I think we have a real problem."

Groce says he has complained to the city, his city councillor and the mayor. He said he is waiting for clarification from the city before paying the bill, but believes his insurance could help if necessary.

Complaints about cost rising

Jeff Browaty, the chair of the city's protection and community services committee, said in an e-mail that "calls about the cost of paramedic services have been increasing over time."

He added if Groce needs more time to pay the bill, he could likely make arrangements with the city department. A city spokesperson said staff are willing to help Groce resolve his credit concerns.

The current ambulance funding model requires a patient to pay for half of the cost of the service, while the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority and city each kick in 25 per cent. The city says it can not track people if they do not provide forwarding information to Canada Post or directly to the Fire Paramedic Service. 

Groce says he wants people to realize they could be charged in similar circumstances in the future. He also wants the city to examine how people are informed about ambulance charges and also look at the process used to send bills to a collection agency. 

"All I know is that now all of a sudden I have a collection agency coming after me after I've spent years and years building up credit," Groce says.