American man without health insurance praises the cheap medical bill he paid at Taiwanese Hospital
Taiwan News
Date: 2019/02/27
By: Keoni Everington, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
Photo of Bozeat receiving an IV. (Photo from Kevin Bozeat’s Facebook page)
TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A U.S. citizen, who recently had to make a late night trip to an emergency room in Taipei, has praised the swift, quality care he received for a low price.
On Feb. 18, Kevin, a 25-year-old American man, on Facebook posted his harrowing account of suffering severe stomach pain and incessant vomiting. Because Kevin, who is studying Chinese in Taiwan, does not yet have Taiwan’s National Health Insurance (NHI), was afraid of the cost of medical treatment, but he ultimately chose to go the emergency room and was pleasantly surprised with the efficiency and effectiveness of the treatment, and most importantly, its low cost.
In a post sarcastically titled “The Horrors of Socialized Medicine: a first hand experience,” Kevin said that he began to suffer severe stomach pains on Feb. 17 and soon found himself vomiting at 30-40-minute intervals. Despite completely emptying his stomach of its contents, he continued to suffer the urge to puke.
He tried to sleep it off, but by 3 a.m. on Feb. 18, his stomach cramps intensified, and he reported feeling dizzy and light-headed. Despite his desperate condition, he was still reluctant to visit a Taiwanese hospital because he was unsure of the quality of care, doctors’ ability to speak English, and how much it would ultimately cost, since he had not yet been in the country long enough to receive his NHI card.
[FULL STORY]
