Health funds to pay MDA directly for ambulance service

To ensure payment on the new scheme, one must bring the bill to the health fund within 30 days of using the service.

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH
ambulances 298 (photo credit: AP)
ambulances 298
(photo credit: AP)
Many of those using Magen David Adom ambulances no longer have to pay for them after arriving at hospital emergency rooms; the four health funds will pay for urgent cases directly.
Health fund members will bring the bill from MDA to their insurer, and MDA will be paid fully or partially according to agreed-upon criteria.
In the past, somebody who called MDA at 101 had to pay for the service in cash, or by check or credit card, and only then apply to the health fund for reimbursement. But many people, especially the elderly and new immigrants, were unaware of their right to be reimbursed and ended up absorbing the bill themselves.
To ensure payment on the new scheme, one must bring the bill to the health fund within 30 days of using the service.
If a person is evacuated by a regular MDA ambulance and then hospitalized, the full cost is covered by the health fund. If he uses a mobile intensive care ambulance and is hospitalized, MDA will be fully compensated by the health fund.
If taken by ambulance but not hospitalized, the cost must be paid by the person taken to the hospital, but it is recommended that he check his eligibility with his insurer.
For someone hurt in a road accident, taken by a regular or mobile intensive care ambulance and hospitalized, the health insurer will pay after receiving the form within a month. If taken in a regular ambulance and not hospitalized, the person must pay MDA for the service and apply to their auto insurance company for reimbursement.
A soldier in the standing army or on reserve duty must bring the bill to his unit’s clinic. If hurt in a work accident, a civilian must go to the National Insurance Institute to open a work-accident tile. If the incident is not recognized as a work accident, he must pay the fee to MDA.
A woman in labor who is taken by MDA ambulance to the nearest hospital and gives birth within 72 hours will not have to pay MDA; the fee will be covered by the NII. In other cases, the bill will be sent to the woman’s home for payment.
If a person is a victim of terrorism, he must go to the NII to open a file, and the institute will pay MDA for the ambulance.