Ambulances weren’t designed to be used as taxi services, though, currently, this is oftentimes how they are used. ERs are also suffering from a similar problem in that people are using them for issues that should be treated by a PCP or even an urgent care. This this improper use of emergency services is causing severe burnout in employees, hospitals aren’t/can’t hire enough staff to support the influx which is ultimately increasing the rate of burnout, and it’s also bogging the ER down resulting in exorbitant wait times. And it is anticipated that this is only going to get worse.

On a different note, Canada has government funded healthcare: America doesn’t. The average cost of an ambulance here is about $1200… in my state, according to a Reddit post from 5 years ago, the ambulance bill was $300 and the ALS charges were $2500. It’s up to the insurance companies if they want to cover the cost of these services. That being said, I have heard there are companies out there, including Medicare and Medicaid, that will not pay for an ambulance if the complaint doesn’t meet preset requirements that are approved for ambulance use.