A female patient in Kedah with gastritis recently fled a hospital after finding out that her insurance does not cover her illness.
The incident is believed to have happened on Monday (October 24th) at a hospital in Sungai Petani, Kedah. The woman fled her ward in order to avoid paying for the hospital bills right after finding out that she couldn’t use her insurance.
Photo via Bloomberg
A nurse who discovered her missing then filed a police report.
According to Berita Harian, Kuala Muda District Police chief, Assistant Commissioner Zaidy Che Hassan said the 32-year-old patient initially registered for treatment at the hospital at around 6:40 PM, before being admitted to the ward.
But at about 9:30 PM, the hospital informed the patient that her insurance could not be used and as a result, she refused treatment and wanted to leave the hospital.
However, the nurse advised the woman to pick up some medications first and she was also asked to settle her hospital bills before leaving, “The nurse then informed the doctor on duty about the patient before arranging for her discharge.”
The patient was found to have left the ward without paying or checking out of the hospital at around 10:40 PM.
Medical staff then attempted to contact the woman, but she did not answer her phone which prompted the nurse to file a police report.
According to Zaidy, initial investigation found that the woman went to the private hospital for a stomach ache and claimed to have insurance when she checked into the ward, “As a result, the police attempted to reach out to the patient but were unsuccessful.
“They looked for her at her home, but she was nowhere to be found and her door was locked,” he added.
Police are still conducting an investigation and trying to track down the woman.
By: Aishah Akashah Ahadiat
