American woman feared the worst after medical emergency in Paris. Her jaw dropped when the nurse revealed final bill
Despite bleeding away, the woman was worried about the medical debt she would incur, only to be met with a shocking assurance.
The last thing you want is to have your pockets wrung out dry in cases of an emergency while living abroad. An American woman named Maddie Clark (@maddiemclark) was worried sick when she found herself in a medical emergency in Paris and had to be hospitalized. In her post shared on Instagram, the woman revealed one of her biggest “culture shocks” was not the fashion, food, or anything else, but rather the medical policy. She was bleeding during the eerie hours of the morning when she had to be taken to the hospital in an ambulance. When the terrified woman asked the nurse about insurance and an estimate of payment, she was told that she didn’t need to worry about it.
Clark had been living in Paris and working as an au pair, earning only 500 euros a month. So when her medical emergency arose, she was freaking out about the medical debt she would fall into. As she lay in the ambulance in pain, bleeding, what worried her more was the expenses. Before the medics at the ER could take any steps to help her, Clark stopped them and asked what the cost would be. Years later, she recounts what the nurse said to her in detail. She gave her a “pitying expression,” Clark recalled, and said, “This is not America.” The nurse assured Clark that she didn’t have to worry about money “now or later.”
Right enough, for her ER visit, the ambulance and the seven stitches she received that day, she was charged “zero.” “I’m sitting there on that stretcher, and I’m like, ‘What are you on, lady?’” Clark recalled that she was only earning 500 euros at the time. When she compared this with the American costs, she mentioned that in New Jersey, the ambulance ride alone would have been around $1,700. It has been a few years since the woman got a full-time job and has been living in Paris, but to this day, she hasn’t forgotten the shock she received from the news the nurse delivered to her.
Even presently, when Clark had to fill a prescription at a pharmacy, she was left impressed. “I have now been working here full time for years, paying French taxes from my salary and for additional private insurance called a ‘mutuelle,’” she mentioned. It was from this that her prescription was also covered. “Four years here and I’m still mind blown every time,” Clark remarked. According to data published by the National Library of Medicine, 36% of US households had medical debt as of 2024. 21% had a past-due medical bill. People of all ages are drowning in debt, trying to figure out how to clear the dues of their own sickness or even that of deceased loved ones. Over 40% have a debt of over $35,000. While the percentage for higher amounts was lower, it’s shocking to see how many can’t find relief even if they find healing. The highest medical debt was among those aged 45 to 54 years. In another post, Clark shared other culture shocks she received, and they included laws for tenants' safety, affordable or free education, generous paid time off to respect quality of life, and so on. It’s no wonder they say, “C’est la vie!”
@summermattou wrote, “So sad people are mind blown by the fact that we don't let people die.” @spymaz added, “Welcome to Europe, darling, we have public healthcare.” @blacknwhitebaking remarked, “1700 just for an ambulance ride? Is it powered by liquid gold??” @stefyvallo noted, “In Italy, it's the same because health is a right established by the Constitution.”
You can follow Maddie Clark (@maddiemclark) on Instagram for more content on Paris and lifestyle.
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