Dubai: Ricter Calixto, a salesman who faced mounting Dh700-an-hour medical bills to treat his premature newborn son at Welcare Hospital, is elated after getting a huge discount from the private Welcare Hospital.
Instead of paying more than Dh70,000 in hospital bills, the 32-year-old Filipino was asked to pay just Dh10,000 after XPRESS ran a story about his dilemma.
Calixto has been through an emotional roller-coaster when his joy upon seeing his first-born on November 11 soon turned to despair when faced with mounting bills, which he feared would land him in jail. The salesman, who earns less than Dh5,000 a month, said daily bills of up to Dh9,800 for his son's neonatal ICU treatment at Welcare Hospital were way beyond his means.
In the first four days since the C-section delivery of his son Ric Andrei, who weighed just 1.6kg at birth, both mother and child had accumulated more than Dh70,000 in bills and was told the bill may shoot up to Dh250,000, depending on the baby's condition.
Major complications
The baby had low blood gas and the X-ray showed problems with respiration.
XPRESS ran Calixto's appeal for help on November 18.
His wife Analisa, 29, underwent a Caesarian section at 31 weeks after she suffered from temporary blindness, vomiting episodes due to a severe form of pre-eclampsia and a pregnancy-induced hypertension that threatened the lives of both mother and child.
"I'm grateful to Welcare for giving my wife and son a chance to live and for the generous discount from the hospital administration," Calixto said.
Ric Andrei was discharged from Welcare after his doctor declared him safe and stable on November 21. "I'm happy that I didn't have to go to jail for this."
Help also started pouring in following the publication of the appeal, Calixto added.
Arun Avamil, Welcare Hospital spokesperson said, "Given the situation of the family and the fact that the case was admitted on an emergency basis, the hospital decided to waive more than 80 per cent of the total bill for the Calixto family," Avamil said.
