Madrid
Not all countries enjoy public services, a right that is guaranteed in Spain. In the United States, specifically, health care is private and residents and tourists depend on insurance to cover the excessive prices if they need it. It is precisely this situation that Andrea Farnós has faced, a young woman who has experienced first-hand the realities of the aforementioned private healthcare in the US.
“Stories of how allergies from Texas almost killed me in a country without public healthcare.” This is how Farnós begins her story, which has already reached almost 2,000 views on X. It all started three days ago, when the young woman began to notice that she was having trouble breathing. After several attempts to solve the problem, and after feeling loud ringing in his lungs, he finally decided to write to the insurance company and “run” to the hospital.
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Farnós explained the doctor’s diagnosis. It was “a very bad allergy” and his “airways were very obstructed.” Therefore, the doctor explained to her that she had to inject intravenous medication “urgently”, something that of course was expensive, as she herself explained in the thread on the aforementioned social network. “Before starting the treatment, my insurance company tells me that it will not cover anything that exceeds $1,000,” Farnós mentioned, while emphasizing that the cost of the aforementioned product was $1,800.
🇺🇸 Stories of how Texas allergies almost killed me in a country WITHOUT PUBLIC HEALTH.
I was so calm three days ago and I say, oops, am I having a hard time breathing? He he. I packed my inhalers – I always carry them – and onwards.
In Spain that would have been enough. It was not the case.
— Andrea Farnós 🍃 (@AndreaFarnos) October 24, 2024
“The treatment of these people is horrible”
The Spanish woman, for her part, decided not to pay that amount, so she did not take medication. “I bought over-the-counter antihistamines and continued with my inhalers the entire time.” Even so, this solution was temporary, as two hours later he had to return to a different clinic to be offered a better alternative. It was not until later when she was informed that the hospital did not work with the insurance company, so everything they did to her would be at her expense.
The young woman, who was finally able to be cured with a “prick of corticosteroid”, has turned to X to relate this “unpleasant” experience. “My fault for not thinking about possible bad allergies, but the treatment of these people is horrible,” he concluded, alluding to American healthcare workers.
