Colorado Shooting Victims Have Their Medical Bills Wiped Out By Hospitals

Some victims of last week’s shooting in Aurora, Colo., won’t have to worry about paying the costly medical bills associated with their treatment and immediate recovery from their gunshot wounds.

Three of the Colorado hospitals that took in victims from the mass shooting at a midnight premiere of “The Dark Knight Rises” have announced that the will limit or completely wipe out the medical bills, the Associated Press reported. The victims are mostly young and many are without health insurance, the report noted.

Children’s Hospital Colorado, which treated six shooting victims, announced it is using donations and its charity care fund to cover the medical expenses of the uninsured. For those with insurance, the hospital is waiving all co-pays for shooting victims.

“We are committed to supporting these families as they heal,” a statement released by the hospital read.

HealthOne, which owns the Medical Center of Aurora and Swedish Medical Center, also says it will limit or eliminate charges based on the individual circumstances of the patients. The two hospitals have treated 22 shooting victims.

The victims still face a long and possibly costly recovery. The associated medical costs are expected to remain high as they enter the rehabilitation phase of their recovery

The Colorado shooting victims have had help elsewhere. Warner Bros., the studio that released “The Dark Knight Rises” contributed $2 million to help victims pay their bills and other families have taken to online fundraisers to help with the costs.

One of those victims, 23-year-old aspiring comic Caleb Medley, remained in critical condition with a head wound as his wife, Katie, gave birth to their first child on Tuesday. His friends have started a fundraiser with a goal of collecting $500,000 for hospital bills and other expenses, the Associated Press reported. By Wednesday they were almost halfway there.

“All the money that is donated is going straight to Caleb, Katie and Hugo to help them with medical bills, getting back on their feet, help with the baby items,” friend Michael West told the Associated Press. “Anything and everything that they need.”

There are still 17 Colorado shooting victims being treated at area hospitals, and though they varying sizes of bills, there is on common denominator–they all owe a lot of money. Caleb Medley’s family estimates that his medical bills just for the immediate recovery will top $2 million.