‘It was scarier than my first night in Vietnam’: Local family warns of traveling abroad
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) – A medical emergency in Mexico has a local family warning the public about traveling outside the country.
Dixie Stinson of Lafayette had a heart attack while vacationing in Cancun, Mexico. Without traveler’s insurance, she and her family were stuck at a hospital with bills piling and threats pending.
“It was scarier than my first night in Vietnam,” said Dixie Stinson’s husband, Mo Stinson.
Medical bills were the last thing on his mind when his wife was headed to a hospital in Mexico last Monday.
“I really thought that we were going to lose her,” said Mr. Stinson.
When they got there, hospital administrators told him his American insurance wouldn’t cover her two heart surgeries.
“I asked the doctor, why aren’t you operating? And he says we are waiting for administrative, and I said you mean money? And he nodded,” said Mr. Stinson.
Time was ticking for Dixie Stinson who had two blockages in her heart. So, the Stinson family maxed out credit cards to raise enough for the hospital to go on with the surgeries. When Mrs. Stinson recovered, they were told they couldn’t leave until they paid more.
“Very scary,” said Mo Stinson. “I saw one lady they were threatening to put her in jail because she didn’t pay her bill,”
News 18 asked if the hospital ever threatened to take him to jail.
“My daughter and sister-in-law say that they didn’t threaten to put us in jail,” said Stinson. “But they were very threatening to us.”
AAA Service Center Manager Sue Haring said travel insurance could have solved the problem.
“Can’t say enough how important it is to make sure you are completely covered before leaving the country,” said Haring.
She said medical emergencies are more likely on vacation.
“I had a gentleman one time in London that got hit by a bus just walking across the street, and luckily he did have the travel accident insurance and the medical insurance so they took care of everything,” said Haring.
Stinson wishes he knew about travel insurance before he left for Cancun. He said he’s lucky local U.S. Representative Todd Rokita and U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly got involved to get the hospital to release them.
Here is the full statement from Rep. Rokita on the Stinson family on Monday:
“While in contact with the Stinson family to obtain authorization to work through official channels to resolve the situation, I made immediate formal contact with the Consulate Section Chief, the highest available decision maker at our consulate in Merida, Mexico, to make sure that the top State Department officials in the area were aware of all the details. I also informed the consulate of my intention to travel to Mexico and the hospital on Saturday. During my scheduled update on Friday evening with the Consulate Section Chief, it was brought to our attention that the hospital was resolving the situation.
Part of our plan was sending a letter on Friday asking the Stinsons’ health insurance company to promise the Amerimed hospital that it would provide coverage for the cost of the surgeries. We have not yet received a formal response to our letter.
In order to prevent incidents like this in the future, I encourage anyone planning on traveling abroad to prepare for the possibility of a medical emergency. Ways to do this include checking whether your insurance covers you while you are abroad, and contacting the local consulate or embassy for a list of recommended hospitals and medical professionals. Buying travel insurance, which is offered by several Hoosier companies, can also be very helpful. The US Department of State provides information and resources to help travelers prepare for, and deal with, medical emergencies while abroad at its website: www.travel.state.gov.”
Dixie is still recovering at a hotel in Mexico but wants to thank everyone who helped raise nearly $30,000 through a GoFundMe account.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the people in the United States, because it’s one of the greatest countries in the world,” said Dixie Stinson. “I just want to thank everybody for all their prayers and all their giving, because we couldn’t have done it without them.”
Their total bill is looking to cost $111,000. Stinson said insurance should reimburse $50,000 but they have to come up with the rest on their own.
Dixie Stinson is expected to head back home on Tuesday.