US Healthcare Costs Drive Americans to Seek Affordable Care at Music Festivals
The exorbitant cost of healthcare in the United States has become a widely known issue, prompting many Americans to find alternative ways to access medical treatment without incurring overwhelming debt. One TikTok user, @camisplaylist, recently went viral after she took her sick friend to a music festival’s medical tent instead of a hospital.
In the now-viral video, which has garnered nearly six million views, Cami, a 26-year-old music influencer, documented her time waiting outside the medical tent at the When We Were Young music festival in Las Vegas. In the video’s captions, Cami wrote, “When healthcare in the US is so expensive you take your friend to a music festival so he can get his sore throat checked at the medical tent for free.”
Cami further explained her reasoning, stating, “It’s literally cheaper to go to a music festival than the hospital, and you get a concert as a little treat after.” BuzzFeed reached out to Cami for more insight into her experience. She shared that her friend had developed a sore throat on the first day of the festival. “The next morning, we made sure he didn’t have COVID-19, but his throat was still hurting,” Cami said. “He said he was going to go to the hospital instead of attending day two of the festival. As someone who is personally scared of American hospital bills, I jokingly suggested, ‘Why don’t you go to the festival and get your throat checked at the medical tent for free?’ My friend said it was actually not a bad idea, so that’s what we did.”
Once inside the medical tent, Cami’s friend received treatment from the medical staff. Cami described the tent as small but with a real doctor who was very kind. They checked his vital signs, pulse, blood pressure, eyes, verbal and motor functions. They also inquired about his overall well-being and provided him with medications, including Benadryl. While major exams couldn’t be conducted in the medical tent, it served its purpose for minor ailments.
Cami mentioned that the appointment lasted around 20 minutes, and they even joked about going to another tent for an X-ray after her friend had twisted his wrist. She humorously remarked, “General admission tickets for the festival started at $200, and we got to listen to Blink-182 in the background while we waited. Do you get to see a rock band when you go to a regular hospital? I don’t think so.”
Originally from Brazil, Cami expressed her astonishment at the stark difference in healthcare systems between her home country and the US. “I was born in Brazil, where the healthcare system works, and it’s free,” she said. “I know the US and Brazil have different economies and population sizes, but growing up seeing a basic human right (healthcare) entirely for free, it’s crazy to think such a big and powerful country doesn’t offer that to their people.”
Cami also shared stories of friends who faced exorbitant medical bills in the US. One friend’s ambulance and stitches after a car accident amounted to $79,000, while another friend was charged $700 for a doctor’s visit for the flu. She concluded, “So, I learned that going to the doctor here is the last resort.”
According to United Healthcare, the average cost of an emergency room visit in the US is $2,600, with an average wait time of two hours. Cami’s decision to utilize the festival’s medical tent resonated with many commenters who agreed that festival tickets were often cheaper than visiting a doctor’s office without insurance.
However, others expressed their dismay at the state of healthcare in the US, emphasizing the need for affordable and accessible medical care. One user shared their own experience of getting their inhaler restocked for free at a festival medical tent.
The discussion sparked by Cami’s viral video raises questions about the lengths Americans are willing to go to access affordable healthcare. Have you ever considered buying tickets to a music festival for access to medical care? Share your thoughts and any other creative ways you’ve found to obtain healthcare without resorting to expensive hospital visits in the comments below.
To stay updated with Cami, you can follow her on TikTok or Instagram.
