Evansville Woman Stuck with $30,000 Bill After Heart Failure in Mexico

Imagine you're traveling abroad,  your health takes a turn for the worse, but you're stuck and need to get home to have heart surgery, for Marilyn Crickmer the nightmare was reality. After traveling to Mexico and having heart problems, she was able to get back to the U.S with a debt of more than $30,000, that both Mexico and Medicare refuse to pay. Crickmer is a retired grandmother who has a passion for traveling the world, but when her heart essentially failed her last year, she was left with a choice, a choice that's still costing her today. Her paperwork showing debt, money she had to borrow from her IRA just to get back to America. Crickmer was in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico last June, when she passed out due to heart problems, she says she had to be medically flown to San Diego and Mexico wouldn't let her leave without paying for its services; flight, ambulance and a brief stay in a clinic. Crickmer says Medicare and her secondary insurance aren't helping foot the bill. Crickmer says she never thought about adding traveler's insurance, although the option is available. Her IRA took a big hit and now she's paying 25% taxes on it, which is increasing her debt. Its been almost a year, but her fight is not over. Crickmer says she'll never leave the country again without adding traveler's insurance and wants you to do the same. Travel agencies say the added insurance is essential and usually costs between $300-$400, an alternative Crickmer says beats her current situation with the federal government. Since the 4th is a holiday we were unable to reach Medicare. Crickmer says she's still waiting to hear if Medicare decides to help.