A California family was left reeling after they were slapped with a medical bill of nearly $300,000 for the treatment of their 2-year-old son who was bitten by a rattlesnake. The toddler needed close to three dozen vials of antivenom to counteract the venom, which alone cost $213,278 of the total $297,461 bill. The bill also included charges for two ambulance rides, an emergency room visit, and several days in a pediatric intensive care unit.
The incident took place when the toddler, Brigland, was playing in their San Diego backyard and was bitten by a Southern Pacific Rattlesnake. The bite was located between his thumb and index finger. As the venom quickly spread through Brigland’s small body, his mother, Lindsay Pfeffer, dialed 911 and anxiously awaited an ambulance to transport them to the nearest medical facility equipped with antivenom, Palomar Medical Center Escondido, located 25 minutes away.
Pfeffer vividly recalls the terrifying moment, “He was laying down on the sidewalk out front; just flat and sweating and he wasn’t moving,” she said. The venom caused severe swelling and bruising from the toddler’s fingers to his shoulder. The emergency room team had to resort to using a handheld drill to inject the antidote into the boy’s bone marrow when they couldn’t administer the medicine through an IV.
Once stabilized, Brigland was transferred to Ray Children’s Hospital, an hour away, where he remained in intensive care for several days until he recovered. During his treatment, the boy received 30 vials of Anavip antivenom across the two hospitals, each charging a significant amount for the life-saving medicine.
The first hospital administered 10 vials of Anavip, charging $9,574 per vial, totaling $95,574. The second hospital, one of the largest children’s hospitals on the West Coast, charged $5,875 for each of the 20 vials administered, totaling $117,532.
The family’s health insurance plan covered a portion of the costs, leaving them with a $7,200 bill for the hospital visits. However, they now owe an additional $11,300 for one of the ambulance rides. Despite the expensive treatment, Brigland’s hand has since healed, though nerve damage and scar tissue have left his right thumb much weaker. The family has since installed snake fencing around their yard to prevent future incidents.