Canadian Couple Face $1 Million Medical Bill After Woman Gives Birth In U.S.
Just call her the million-dollar baby.
A Canadian couple were slammed with a $950,000 medical bill in March after their daughter was prematurely born during a trip to the United States last year, and the costs won’t be covered by insurance, according to multiple reports.Darren Kimmel and Jennifer Huculak were vacationing in Hawaii last October when Huculak’s water broke two days into their trip. She spent six weeks on bed rest in a Hawaiian hospital, and delivered their baby, Reece, on Dec. 10, 2013. Born nine weeks early, Reece was placed in intensive care for two months.The Saskatchewan couple had purchased travel insurance from Blue Cross before their trip, and said they received assurances from their broker that “we were covered,” Huculak told The Toronto Star. And despite a bladder infection that caused bleeding several months earlier, the family’s doctor gave Huculak the green light to travel.But Blue Cross denied payment.“We are unable to provide coverage for any medical expenses incurred for Ms. Huculak’s baby,” a Saskatchewan Blue Cross representative wrote in a December 2013 letter to Honolulu-based Kapi’olani Medical Center, where Huculak was treated. “As Ms. Huculak’s emergency medical claim has been denied on the basis that her medical emergency is excluded from coverage under the terms of her pre-existing condition provision, her baby is also not eligible for coverage.”The insurance company added that Huculak’s policy expired on Nov. 9, 2013. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.[pullquote style=”left” quote=”dark”]We are confident that our decision to decline this claim was done in a considered manner based on the contract terms, the situation which resulted in this emergency medical claim, and a review of recent medical history,” Blue Cross said of the case.[/pullquote]The bulk of the $950,000 bill went to care for the couple’s daughter, while $160,000 was for Huculak’s hospital stay and $40,000 was for a medical evacuation. The Saskatchewan government is paying $20,000 to help cover part of the costs, and since going public with their story, Huculak and Kimmel have been receiving offers of private donations from strangers. However, the couple still plans to file for bankruptcy, as they can’t afford to pay the entire bill.
“We looked at all avenues to trying to get medevac [air ambulance] home,” she said. “One medevac company would not fly me in my condition, and the other one would only do it with a surgical team on board and still recommended me not [to] travel.”Canada has a publicly funded universal health care system, and all eligible residents are guaranteed access to medical services. The United States has a more privately oriented health care system, which means citizens must pay for more of the costs of treatment up front.
Kimmel and Huculak did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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