Many Americans are hesitant to call an ambulance because of the unknown costs, preferring a family member to take them. This is ultimately a decision you need to make, but what can help is knowing the costs of your local ambulance before you need it.
Many counties and cities publicly post the price of their ambulance online. Google your “neighborhood + ambulance rates.”
For instance, a large west coast city charges $1,500 for transporting a patient at the basic life support (BLS) level. Each mile is an additional $19. Additional supplies such as oxygen cost $102.
For a suburban county on the East Coast, calling an ambulance for treatment costs $150 if they don’t end up transporting you to the hospital, and $375 for BLS if they do. An additional $7.50 per mile charge also applies. Advanced Life Support (ALS) ranges between $475-575. ALS, as compared to BLS, covers more invasive interventions such as intubation and insertion of catheters for fluid delivery.
These charges may also apply for fire departments if they provide medical services. Many households are closer to their local fire department than to the ambulance station. Ambulances began charging patients after facing decreasing public financing and increasing costs.
While most insurances cover ambulance rides, most ambulance companies are considered out-of-network, and thus patients may often encounter balance billing (or surprise medical bills). Though congress enacted in 2022 the “No Surprises Act” to limit balance billing, these protections do not apply to ground ambulances. Insurances reimburse ground ambulances at the usual, and customary rate (UCR), and so if the charges are above that amount, the patient may face balance billing. That means some patients may be asked to pay a copayment or coinsurance amount, and still be balance billed.
Many counties do offer low-income assistance programs. Other counties may offer yearly subscription programs.
