Dominick Sapien and a fellow paramedic arrived at a home in Central Wyoming to find the victim of a fall lying helpless on the floor, one knee split in half, part of the mangled mass of flesh and bone jiggling up and down.
Sapien, president of United Steelworkers (USW) Local 9012, prepared to transport the person to the hospital for emergency surgery. But the patient, writhing in pain and unable to move without help, balked at going.
“I can’t,” the patient said, describing the cost of an ambulance ride and hospital care as simply unaffordable. “I’ll just rest.”
