Kostelka: Unrequested air emergency?

Unrequested air emergency?

ORF-Series "Bürgeranwalt" (“Advocate for People”) – Broadcast of October 10th 2009

During the ORF television broadcast “Bürgeranwalt“ aired on October 10th 2009 Ombudsman Peter Kostelka raised the issue of refunding expenses related to air rescue helicopter transports following leisure accidents in the alps.

Ms. M was skiing on an official slope in her holidays and badly injured her leg. Immediately after the accident the woman’s father had informed the slope rescue, which arrived shortly afterwards. Ms. M and her father were in a state of shock and uncertain about the condition of her leg, which she couldn’t move anymore. Suddenly an air ambulance arrived, although Mrs. M and her father hadn’t asked for it. In the hospital doctors diagnosed a complicated fracture of her leg. Even an amputation was discussed, but fortunately not carried out. Ms M was several weeks away sick and finally dismissed.

Air rescue charged Ms. M in consequence with € 2.900,80 for her transport. Mrs. M paid at last the amount by herself, because health insurance refused to carry her expenses not even standard payment of € 900. The payment request of the flying ambulance was legally justified, because the transport contract was impliedly concluded by utilizising the transport. Ms. M was informed about the transport charges only afterwards and was not aware of the fact that health insurance did not include air emergency in her case.

Representatives of social insurance or of the ministry of health didn’t appear at the television broadcast nor had they provided written statements. Ms. M is not an individual case, unfortunately many native and foreign tourists have same experiences each year.

Ombudsman Kostelka stated that it would be irresponsible to leave an individual alone in the mountains. His general message was that a general regulation regarding the cost absorption was urgently required. Rescue costs and transport costs from the mountain to the valley due to sport- and tourist accidents aren’t refunded so far by basic health insurance. Moreover health insurance wouldn’t even pay for transports from the valley to the hospital, if a life-threathening situation was estimated at first, but according to an ex post judgement in the hospital denied again. The estimation at the place of accident doesn’t count in this context. Should a life-threathening situation be declared according to NACA 4, the refund of expenses was limited to approximately € 1.000. In order to be fully covered private insurance companies offer policies that cover air transport following leisure accidents.

Meanwhile Austria has the tightest concentration regarding air emergency. In consequence many more similar situations result from the fact that decisions are made on the mountain, mostly neither patients nor health insurances can control the way of transport.

Minister Stöger arranged a task force with representatives of social insurance and Ministries of Health, the Interior and Traffic to discuss future of the air emergency system at the beginning of the year. But Austrian provinces can’t agree on a consistent solution.

In the Styrian municipality Donnersbachwald, a skiing resort, another innovative solution was found. Lift passes automatically include rescue insurance. Alpgarant, a private company, offers a complete package named SAFE-R, which organizes mountain rescue and bears these expenses including air emergency. Thus tourist regions profit from a new quality criterion in tourism and tourists need not to bother high charges for air emergency transports.

Ombudsman Kostelka calls attention to this additional benefit for tourist economy and hopes that it will be supported more intensely.