Man Fleeing Ambulance Prompts Jokes About The Cost Of U.S. Medical Services

meredithscharinge74/TikTok

July 28, 2021, 6:54 am

A TikTok of a man fleeing from an ambulance has people talking about just how expensive health care in the United States can be.

Featured Video
Hide

The video starts off on a man in khaki shorts and a backward hat struggling to get off a gurney as two EMTs try to pull him back, while a man who might be a security guard of some sort looks on.

He escapes their grasp and full-on flees the scene, running past the ambulance and awkwardly ducking into a driveway between two restaurants. Unfortunately, he misjudges the situation and winds up pushing a server carrying a large tray of food, which crashes to the ground. The ambulance runner himself then trips and falls to the pavement, but appears to be getting right back up to keep fleeing as the video ends.

Advertisement
Hide

Although the video is only a few seconds long, it’s made a big splash, racking up almost 10 million views on TikTok in the six days since it was first posted.

There’s no further context to be found about the incident, which took place in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but TikTokers have their own theories — most of which involve the man not wanting to pay for a ride in the ambulance.

“They just told him the price,” one user joked.

Another offered up a caption: “When you live in the US and they try to take you to the hospital.”

Advertisement
Hide

The cost of an ambulance ride depends on a number of factors, including whether a person has insurance and how useful that insurance actually is. But costs before factoring insurance into the equation can easily range from $500 to over $1000 — and that’s not even including the actual hospital visit.

The fleeing man very well may have had a different reason for running, but viewers understood why he might not want to face that sort of bill.

“I’d do the same thing if people were trying to put me in an ambulance,” wrote @finnegantheferal. “Ain’t no way I’m paying for that wee woo taxi.”

Several theorized that he may have just been drunk rather than injured, and going to the hospital over it may not have been worth the money or the hassle.

“He just saved half a million dollar by doing this! Good for him! Just drink water and sleep and you will be alright bro,” suggested @ma07_09.

Share this article

*First Published: July 28, 2021, 6:54 am