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this post was submitted on 30 Jul 2026
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A Boring Dystopia
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In Switzerland I pay 40CHF (~49USD) yearly to get a free helicopter evacuation in case of an accident. Never needed it, but I know people that have. Absolutely worth it. While it's "just hiking" in most cases, being out in nature in the middle of nowhere can get dangerous fast.
I don’t think people on here realize this but America literally has this too. My grandmother pays for it because she lives out in a very rural area. She pays a little more ($79 a year)
Not bullshitting you: https://www.lifeteam.net/membership
Quite limited service area: https://www.lifeteam.net/services/service-area
True but there is more than one of these orgs in America. This one just happens to be the biggest one.
joey lawrence here. i play the dimwitted heartthrob on blossom but there's no heart in the american medical system--last week i paid 5000000 to remove an entire package of sweet tarts from my urethra.
whoa!
In Italy I pay 0€ to be evacuated from anywhere. It's crazy that you have to pay for an emergency.
In France I think you pay a fee in certain situations (ski resort) but otherwise it is the same. And the pilots are total badasses. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jk7qUaFMDhw https://youtu.be/M0z9HRC7hlU?t=129
Yeah it's not great. Transport costs for emergencies are often only covered 50% in Switzerland. We do have the second most costly system after the US, and it's for the same reason imho, private insurers. There are some more guardrails here than in the US, so it's not completely horrible, but there are lots of better systems around Europe.
Regarding helicopter rescue specifically, that's kind of a funny case. In Switzerland the first helicopter rescue organization was founded as a non-profit foundation called Rega, and it continues to operate that way.
For patrons the Rega eats the cost of a rescue that no insurance covers. If you are not a patron and get rescued then the cost of the rescue that isn't covered falls to you. So in effect a Rega patronage also acts as a sort of gap-insurance.
Around 40% of the population are registered patrons of the Rega foundation. The cost for that is what benjirenji was actually referring to.
In Switzerland they deal with an endless line of brain-dead tourists that put themselves into stupid situations where helicopter evacuation is the only option, so I can kinda understand that they'd put some stuff in place to prevent people from abusing that.
Tourists are human and all humans deserve free and ready access to healthcare or other emergency services, regardless of if they were born within the arbitrary bounds of your nation or otherwise.
There is no understanding that justifies requiring payment for emergency services behind a paywall.
The relevant part isn't that they're tourists, it's that they willingly put themselves in dangerous situations they aren't prepared for that require dangerous and expensive evacuations by the bucket-load. High mountain evacuations are a very different beast from regular healthcare service. They need the guardrails, I think it's totally fair to pay your 40 bucks as insurance if you're going to go into these places.
The relevant part is they are humans and they deserve unfettered access to emergency services. Period.
Ok then they'll close access to the mountains... Is that better? If it was your son dying from having to rescue some idiot who went up there with no prep during a snowstorm I wonder if you'd think the same.
Or they could just not and provide the service, since that is always an option.
Nah, I'd be damn proud of them for risking their life to save another in need, not irrationally blame the one who had the need, regardless of why they needed it, because I'm not some jaded, misanthropic twit who just assumes the worst in everyone.
so you can pack up your little strawman and fuck all the way off with it.
Ok I'll give this one more reply in hopes you're actually arguing in good faith before I block you for calling me names (uncalled for btw).
Let me be clear, nowhere in what I said have I implied these people are sub-human or shouldn't be rescued, or arguing against universal, free healthcare.
I'm only explaining why Switzerland has this system, because their situation is particular. Based on language, I'm assuming you're a Brit and might not have a lot of experience in high altitude environments, which is totally fair.
Having special insurance or fees for helicopter rescues serves multiple purposes. On one hand, it helps ensure the service can actually be well staffed and well equipped with maintained equipment for when it's actually needed. On the other, and more importantly, it serves a preventive purpose which helps reduce the number of unprepared people going up the mountain. If you know you might end with a big bill for the helicopter ride, you're more likely to think twice about whether you actually know what you're doing.
Reducing these incidents does infinitely more good than just letting everyone do whatever and hope they can be rescued before it's too late for them, and without the rescue team facing peril in process.
Most people without high altitude experience just simply have no idea what they're signing up for when setting off on these trails and underestimate the danger while overestimating their ability. And yes, while I might've let loose a little bit on the tourist trash talk, it's not entirely their fault and of course, they obviously should be rescued regardless.
It's just a reality Switzerland has to deal with and this is one of the measures that help fund and reduce these rescues. Going into these places is a serious endeavour and taking out a very cheap insurance for it is really not a crazy thing. It sure doesn't seem to outrage the Swiss.
I do apologize for going for the personal parallel as that really didn't help the conversation in any positive manner, I sent this in 30sec during a short break.
Free healthcare doesn't mean you can put yourself and others in danger and not face any consequences. In fact I think in some places you might even face legal proceedings for this kind of thing.
I hope this helps clarify my position and allows us to end this thread positively with some understanding, the ball's in your camp, cheers.
I once went on a trip to Atacama and as a responsible person got insurgence that specifically covered rescue above 5000m. When I got there locals told me that there are actually no rescue teams there or anything.
Not sure i would trust insurgents with that task...
I would fix it but they no one will know what are you taking about.
I will, but my memory is shit
"I pay... To get a free..." uhhhhhh one of us doesn't understand what "free" means.
A helicopter ride does not cost 50$.
That's like arguing a house costs $1500 because that's what my yearly insurance is.
You're almost definitely not going to need to get that helicopter ride.
If you're paying for something, it not free, whether it costs $1 or $1,000,000
If you want to be pedantic, at least be extra pedantic about it.
It's all about the meaning of the word get. They aren't literally getting a free ride, since the fee is not for the ride. They pay the fee to be eligible for the free ride. So they are actually paying to be on the list, not to use the service.
But if you want to go one level deeper, in a world running on a capitalist system, nothing can ever be truly free. In the end everything is funded from the economy and we all contribute to the economy in some way.
That sure was a lot to say "you're right, it is in fact not free"
And that is the insurance/tax, not the helicopter ride
The ride is never technically free, whether it's paid by insurance or taxes.
Welcome to the insurance scheme, I guess.