US father survives double rattlesnake bite, faces $1.3m medical bill

An American father survived two consecutive rattlesnake bites, only to face a new crisis: a medical bill exceeding $1.3 million after a complex treatment process that required 54 doses of antivenom.

Chris Haworth, a father of three from Idaho, was bitten twice on the leg while at his parents' garden in Oroville, California, as he was preparing to leave after a four-day family visit.

His condition quickly deteriorated. He lost feeling in his tongue, suffered severe lymph node swelling, and experienced serious lung complications. His condition was later further complicated by disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC), a serious medical condition that causes blood clots to form throughout the body.

Chris Howarth during his hospital treatment.

Doctors at Oroville Hospital administered 54 doses of antivenom, an exceptionally large quantity that completely depleted the hospital's supply, before he was airlifted to Stanford Medical Center. There, the type of antivenom was changed until his condition stabilized.

Haworth was discharged from the hospital after 12 days in the intensive care unit and returned home to Idaho with his wife and three children. However, he still suffers from pain and swelling in his leg and chronic fatigue that limits his daily activities, according to his wife.

The family's ordeal didn't end with his recovery. The total cost of treatment at the two hospitals reached approximately $1.3 million before insurance coverage.

Each dose of antivenom cost around $13,000, while a single night in the Stanford Medical Center's intensive care unit cost $61,000.