OP
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Let me get my doctorly harangue out the way--it'll make me feel better:
I can't think of many things more foolhardy than being without health coverage. It can result in your being denied all but the most essential medical services, put you in debt for many years to come & lead to your getting jerked around by the system even more than is usual. Get on that college policy now. As for dive accident insurance, DAN's basic policy starts at just $54/yr.
Now, you asked about chamber fees--anywhere from $400 to over a $1,000 an hour depending on location & the services your DCI requires.
To give you a brief idea of the potential costs, here's a couple of paragraphs from my Sep '01 Undercurrent http://www.undercurrent.org/ article on dive insurance:
" ... recently saw a bill from a hyperbaric facility on Cozumel for the treatment of unexpected, uncomplicated DCS sustained in Oct 2000. La cuenta? Two Table 6, two Table 5 treatments plus related expenses=US$14,050.10. Had this hapless diver sustained injuries so severe that they couldn't be addressed on island and required air evacuation to Mercy Hospital in Miami, transportation alone would have cost from $10,000 to $20,000 depending on logistics.
Also in Oct 2000, after a week of diving on Provo a physician with over 200 dives suffered an unexpected case of the bends on her last day. She quickly underwent a Table 6 treatment, followed by 3 more over the next 3 days. Her return trip was on a private charter, pressurized Lear Jet to Ft. Lauderdale, a flight of about 600 miles. The damage? $7,200 for hyperbaric services & $4,600 for the ride.
An acquaintance of mine needed evacuation from a live-aboard off Panama to Miami following unexpected DCI sustained in August 2000. The air service secured a charge of $20,000 against his credit card before rolling the craft onto the tarmac.
Had any of these divers been stricken in remote Indonesia, the cost of air evacuation could easily have hit $35,000. Dan Nord, Director of DAN Medical Services, told Undercurrent of an $80,000 tab for an emergency evacuation from Southern Africa."
These numbers haven't gotten any smaller in the past couple of years.
Do the wise thing.
DocVikingo
I can't think of many things more foolhardy than being without health coverage. It can result in your being denied all but the most essential medical services, put you in debt for many years to come & lead to your getting jerked around by the system even more than is usual. Get on that college policy now. As for dive accident insurance, DAN's basic policy starts at just $54/yr.
Now, you asked about chamber fees--anywhere from $400 to over a $1,000 an hour depending on location & the services your DCI requires.
To give you a brief idea of the potential costs, here's a couple of paragraphs from my Sep '01 Undercurrent http://www.undercurrent.org/ article on dive insurance:
" ... recently saw a bill from a hyperbaric facility on Cozumel for the treatment of unexpected, uncomplicated DCS sustained in Oct 2000. La cuenta? Two Table 6, two Table 5 treatments plus related expenses=US$14,050.10. Had this hapless diver sustained injuries so severe that they couldn't be addressed on island and required air evacuation to Mercy Hospital in Miami, transportation alone would have cost from $10,000 to $20,000 depending on logistics.
Also in Oct 2000, after a week of diving on Provo a physician with over 200 dives suffered an unexpected case of the bends on her last day. She quickly underwent a Table 6 treatment, followed by 3 more over the next 3 days. Her return trip was on a private charter, pressurized Lear Jet to Ft. Lauderdale, a flight of about 600 miles. The damage? $7,200 for hyperbaric services & $4,600 for the ride.
An acquaintance of mine needed evacuation from a live-aboard off Panama to Miami following unexpected DCI sustained in August 2000. The air service secured a charge of $20,000 against his credit card before rolling the craft onto the tarmac.
Had any of these divers been stricken in remote Indonesia, the cost of air evacuation could easily have hit $35,000. Dan Nord, Director of DAN Medical Services, told Undercurrent of an $80,000 tab for an emergency evacuation from Southern Africa."
These numbers haven't gotten any smaller in the past couple of years.
Do the wise thing.
DocVikingo