No they don’t. They can receive care in the ER without having to pay in advance or without proof of insurance. But trust me someone is sent a bill(s). Then the fun begins. At some point if payment is not made the amount owed will go to a collection agency or the hospital will file suit to recover the monies. The hospital may decide to write off the bill but there are limits to when this can be done. Constantly writing off bills would be a failure of the hospital’s fiduciary duty.
The point being there is no such thing as free health care.
What surprises me is why not just pocket some meds? Which makes me doubt the guy’s story.
So what? Send a bill. No one is paying it.