Woman in ‘shock’ over $6,000 bill for lifesaving rabies treatment

A suspected bat bite turned into a $6,000 hospital bill for a Seminole County, Florida, woman.

Worried she may have been exposed to rabies, Caroline Ford sought treatment from AdventHealth Altamonte Springs.

She called her insurance company, Anthem Blue Cross, and expected she’d need to pay about $600 based on her conversation over the phone.

Rabies is fatal if left untreated. A regimen of immune globulin and four vaccination shots over two weeks is lifesaving if administered quickly after exposure to the deadly disease.

“With rabies, there are no second chances,” she said.