City Lets 93 Year-old Man Freeze To Death

[Sionnach Glic]

Even our ambulances over here are private companies. That's why a ride in one to the hospital costs $2,000.

WTF? That's insane!

[Captain Seafort]

Don't you mean UnServiceable?

[IanKennedy]

The point about the baby is it cannot in any way shape for form be expected to do anything about the situation, including keep it self warm when required. I don't know the circumstances of this case so it's hard to say but it possible the old man was in a similar situation. The article pointed out that he had no family and his wife died some time ago, so there's no one to help him, other than the kindness of strangers. Hopefully he doesn't live hear Reliant as clearly he'll get turned away if he knocks on his door, after all it's not his problem.

Just one question do you have social services in the states? If he truly is destitute and can't afford to pay is there anything that will help him out in that situation. I'm not being funny I would like to know what the system is. Even if there is there's a history of this sort of thing happening in the UK. People are too proud to ask for help and too scared to run the heating for fear of what the bills will be, slightly different than this case but the result is the same. All pensioners get a cold weather allowance here which is triggered by the weather conditions. It's meant to help them get through cold spells.

On another front, in the UK the government helps out people like this but there are also rules that the companies cannot simply leave you without if you are old or have children in the house and need the service to heat or cook with. This doesn't apply if you are of working age, even if you don't have a job.

Perhaps he should have just sold the 20 or so mobile phones he bought, then he could have paid off the debt and kept alive. (ps now I am being funny, although not in a comical way).

[Reliant121]

My point is, I hardly have the money to spare to be charitable and provide for another family on top of mine, where I in an adult position. My family feels exactly the same way.

[Lt. Staplic]

Well, I don't see how he was put in a position like that, surely his neighbors could have helped him out, clearly there was some kind of relationship there as they were the ones checking up on him when they found him.

I believe we do have a social services program but it's very limited not like anything you have over in Europe.

Back to the Amblulance thing, It may cost $2,000, but stuff like that is automatically paid for assuming you have health insurace (another private comany, meaning not everyone does).

[Aaron]

Even our ambulances over here are private companies. That's why a ride in one to the hospital costs $2,000.

WTF? Do they run on liquid gold?

[IanKennedy]

My point is, I hardly have the money to spare to be charitable and provide for another family on top of mine, where I in an adult position. My family feels exactly the same way.

Letting a neighbor in out of the cold doesn't cost very much.

[IanKennedy]

Even our ambulances over here are private companies. That's why a ride in one to the hospital costs $2,000.

WTF? Do they run on liquid gold?

I suspect they run on lack of competition. After all it's not like you can wait for the next one to come along. As for it being paid automatically, that's a laugh, I heard a story recently were an insurance refused to pay because the person hadn't got permission first. The fact they she was unconscious for the entire time she was in the ambulance didn't seem to sway them from this point of view either. I mean

[Aaron]

Just by going of the article and that he was 93, I'd say maybe he was either just to stubborn or to senile to do anything. We were deployed to an ice storm in 98 and you'd be amazed at how many elderly folk we pulled out of houses either dead or almost dead from the cold or CO poisoning (burning BBQ's and kerosene heaters in the house to stay warm) because they were to stubborn to call for help or go to the shelter.

I suspect they run on lack of competition. After all it's not like you can wait for the next one to come along. As for it being paid automatically, that's a laugh, I heard a story recently were an insurance refused to pay because the person hadn't got permission first. The fact they she was unconscious for the entire time she was in the ambulance didn't seem to sway them from this point of view either. I mean

I've heard several similar stories, same with going to Emerg. Refused payment because they didn't get pre-approved, never mind the bleeding to death.

[Reliant121]

My point is, I hardly have the money to spare to be charitable and provide for another family on top of mine, where I in an adult position. My family feels exactly the same way.

Letting a neighbor in out of the cold doesn't cost very much.

Its not just that. She didnt have the electricity to run the cooker. She didnt have ANY money left. Her house, electricity runs virtually everything. We dont have the food, the time, nor the money to spare.

[Teaos]

The point about the baby is it cannot in any way shape for form be expected to do anything about the situation, including keep it self warm when required. I don't know the circumstances of this case so it's hard to say but it possible the old man was in a similar situation. The article pointed out that he had no family and his wife died some time ago, so there's no one to help him, other than the kindness of strangers. Hopefully he doesn't live hear Reliant as clearly he'll get turned away if he knocks on his door, after all it's not his problem.

Just one question do you have social services in the states? If he truly is destitute and can't afford to pay is there anything that will help him out in that situation. I'm not being funny I would like to know what the system is. Even if there is there's a history of this sort of thing happening in the UK. People are too proud to ask for help and too scared to run the heating for fear of what the bills will be, slightly different than this case but the result is the same. All pensioners get a cold weather allowance here which is triggered by the weather conditions. It's meant to help them get through cold spells.

On another front, in the UK the government helps out people like this but there are also rules that the companies cannot simply leave you without if you are old or have children in the house and need the service to heat or cook with. This doesn't apply if you are of working age, even if you don't have a job.

Perhaps he should have just sold the 20 or so mobile phones he bought, then he could have paid off the debt and kept alive. (ps now I am being funny, although not in a comical way).

He was given help.

They installed that ticker that let him use a certain amount of power. They knew he would never pay, he already owed over a grand. So they were doing a nice thing, they had no obligation to. He just obviously went over the limit, we dont know how unfortunatly.

[IanKennedy]

Just by going of the article and that he was 93, I'd say maybe he was either just to stubborn or to senile to do anything. We were deployed to an ice storm in 98 and you'd be amazed at how many elderly folk we pulled out of houses either dead or almost dead from the cold or CO poisoning (burning BBQ's and kerosene heaters in the house to stay warm) because they were to stubborn to call for help or go to the shelter.

Just the kind of thing I've been thinking...

I've heard several similar stories, same with going to Emerg. Refused payment because they didn't get pre-approved, never mind the bleeding to death.

What next refusing to pay for a funeral unless you get permission to die first.

[Monroe]

Don't give them ideas Ian

[IanKennedy]

My point is, I hardly have the money to spare to be charitable and provide for another family on top of mine, where I in an adult position. My family feels exactly the same way.

Letting a neighbor in out of the cold doesn't cost very much.

Its not just that. She didnt have the electricity to run the cooker. She didnt have ANY money left. Her house, electricity runs virtually everything. We dont have the food, the time, nor the money to spare.

Yes, but we were talking about people freezing to death. Believe me any story you can come up with about not having money I can trump. We've had times when we have had the electricity cut off and the phone, owed buckets of money on the mortgage to the point of nearly being kicked out, plus scraping together money to eat for the week. This compared to someone sitting using a computer and who has internet access frankly makes me... perhaps I'd better not go on as I'm likely to say something you will regret.

[Tsukiyumi]

Even our ambulances over here are private companies. That's why a ride in one to the hospital costs $2,000.

WTF? Do they run on liquid gold?

Good question.

Ian's right, though. When my mom and I were sick (some kind of super-pneumonia that they never did identify ) a few years ago, I called one of my friends to take her to the hospital rather than pay for the ambulance. She was on a ventilator for a week, and that, plus antibiotics, plus the hospital stay (never mind that they really didn't have to do anything; just let her sit there and get better) came out to around $40,000. Suffice to say, her credit is ruined; we can't afford private insurance.

I decided to tough it out alone at home; the one time I thought about calling an ambulance for myself, I reminded myself how much they cost.