A woman named Chad reignited the never-ending debate about the cost of health care after sharing the bizarre experience when a stranger saved her life with her EpiPen.
KFF, an organization that advocates for health policy, reported that Americans will spend a staggering $4.9 trillion on health care by 2023. So it makes sense that people should use any method to save money on medical expenses. Unfortunately, there is no formal etiquette for what you should do when you save someone else’s life, which would have really helped Chad.
Chad needed an EpiPen, and another woman gave it to her, but it came with a condition.
In a post on X, Chad said, “The girl who gave me the EpiPen when I was doing the anaphylactic shock thing told me I could give her the Venmo for the EpiPen, and maybe I’m a bad person, but I think she’s tough for it.”
The post has been viewed 1.5 million times, so it’s no surprise that many people have weighed in with their thoughts on the topic. If Chad was expecting some support, she was seriously disappointed. Almost every comment pointed out how expensive EpiPens are.
“I don’t think her allergies go away when you stay in the hospital,” one person said. Another added: “I don’t think it’s really ridiculous to ask for reimbursement for life-saving drugs that are meant for emergencies.” A third noted, “I don’t think it’s difficult to ask, although I probably shouldn’t.”
EpiPens are very expensive, as are many other prescription drugs.
According to prescription savings provider SingleCare, brand-name EpiPens come in a two-pack that costs $815 without insurance coverage. There are generics that cost less, as well as coupons that you can use to get better deals with different pharmacies. Still, it’s a huge amount.
Of course, health insurance should cover a portion of the cost, but this only applies if you are actually insured. Census Bureau data shows that 8% of Americans will not have health coverage by 2023.
Additionally, a report from the Bank of America Institute found that nearly a quarter of Americans live paycheck to paycheck, meaning they can pay their bills but have nothing for savings or emergency expenses. If someone is in that situation, they certainly won’t be able to afford to spend nearly $1,000 on a prescription, even if it’s a lifesaver.
It looks unique, so it’s hard to say what was the right thing to do.
There really isn’t a specific answer to why medicine costs so much money. Dr. Robert H. Schmerling, MD, theorizes that it comes from a combination of drug companies wanting to make money, expensive advertising, and high insurance costs. It feels like people in the richest country in the world shouldn’t have to deal with these things, though.
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Of course, this is just a dream and not reality. With the way the health care industry stands now, patients often pay very high prices for care, even when they are insured. This means that in the case of a drug like the EpiPen that actually saves lives, many people will feel that their survival comes at a price.
There’s really no way to tell if the woman who gave Chad the EpiPen was wrong to ask for payment or not. It feels a little questionable to ask someone who came close to losing their life to pay for their trouble. But, on the other hand, EpiPens are by no means cheap, and this woman needs access to them just like Chad. It is possible that he will have no other way to replace his epiphany than to step into Chad.
This is a unique situation, and it seems like it would have been handled better if Chad and the other woman had discussed their differing opinions in private instead of taking the argument to social media.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a BA in English and Journalism covering news, psychology, lifestyle and human interest topics.
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