Study shows Ohio law helps with ambulance costs, but more needs to be done

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Many people are aware that taking an ambulance ride can be extremely expensive even in an emergency situation.  

An Ohio surprise billing law that went into effect in 2022 is helping bring down these costs for people, but a new study from Ohio State University showed the law could have unintended consequences.  

The study made it clear just how difficult and complicated it is to protect Americans from these surprise out-of-network ambulance ride costs. Researchers looked at a law that went into effect in New York in 2015 that is quite similar to Ohio’s law.  

The Ohio law states that cost-sharing amounts are limited to a patient’s in-network amount which saves a lot of money, especially since many ambulance rides in Ohio end up being out-of-network and therefore more expensive.  

Dr. Wendy Xu, the lead author of the study and an associate professor of public health at OSU, said this law has helped keep ambulance prices lower for Ohioans.  

“You have the assurance of knowing it might still cost you a couple hundred dollars, but it will be within the range of what your insurance plan has outlined there for the in-network providers,” Xu said.  

She said the study found that a couple of years after the 2015 surprise billing law in New York went into effect, ground ambulance providers ended up raising their prices. She said that could very likely happen in Ohio and may lead to higher insurance premiums overall to make up for the ambulance prices.  

“This is a very typical example of the policies with good intentions that are to protect consumers from the balance billing in emergency situations that may have resulted in unexpected rises of healthcare costs,” Xu said.  

Many people have heard about or experienced expensive ambulance ride bills and how detrimental they can be. Cody Robis said his ambulance bill was much more than he anticipated.

“It’s just way too expensive in general and inaccessible for the average person,” Robis said. “It’s something that is not easily paid off with my kind of income.”  

Megan Azzolina and Sophie Rempe have never taken an ambulance but said they would try not to call an ambulance if they were in an emergency because of the cost.  

“For me personally, it is a factor that would make me not want to call an ambulance right away, which is concerning because that’s probably the best approach to solving a crisis, but the price definitely does lean me away from going with that,” Azzolina said.  

“First and foremost, I’d rather seek a different option first, like having a friend come or even an Uber perhaps, more so than ever reaching out for an ambulance. Just that added feature of the cost,” Rempe said.  

Xu said the study from OSU showed that there is a lot more work to be done when it comes to legislation around surprise billing in Ohio and across the nation. She said it's a difficult policy to tackle because there is no perfect solution.  

To read the full study, click here.