A SCOTTISH man has found himself stuck with a £20k hospital bill after suffering a heart attack on holiday in Tenerife – despite having insurance.
Graham Orr and his fiancée Julie Shirra were getting ready to go to a water park on May 28 when he began to feel pains in his arm and jaw.
Realising he had all the symptoms of a heart attack, they called a taxi and got the driver to take them to the nearest hospital.
The couple decided to stay in a private hospital for the treatment, while under the impression it would be covered by their insurance.
However, as Graham forgot to mention he had asthma on his insurance form, the firm refused to cover his expenses.
After Graham was released from four days in the ICU, he was told that he owed the establishment £20,000.
He said: “We don’t know how long we’re going to be paying this for. Julie’s losing her wages by staying here which is going to mess us up with renting.”
Graham, who has never had prior heart problems, went for a health check-up four months ago, where he was told his heart and blood pressure were fine.
Since they’re unable to leave Tenerife, Julie’s missing one of her daughter’s graduation and her other’s wedding anniversary.
He’s currently attempting to contact his GP for proof to send to his job as he won’t get any wages without documentation.
The stress had such a strong effect on the pair that Julie’s daughter flew over out of worry and to help them cope.
In order to help manage the bill, Graham’s stepdaughter and daughter in Inverness have taken to GoFundMe to try and raise money to pay the bill.
Graham said: “I’ve got the feeling that if I can’t produce what they want me to produce, I’ll not get the ticket to fly me home. It’s not really sunk in yet. It still feels kind of surreal to me and I think when I get home, I’ll realise how close to death I actually was.
“At first I was really quite embarrassed about the fundraiser and getting paranoid that people would think I’m not legitimate.”
The fundraiser has restored his faith in humanity and if there is any money left over, he plans to put it back into the community to help others.
More details about Graham’s GoFundMe page can be found here.
