As reported by the Dallas Morning News:
But the numbers are misleading, said John Goodman, president of the National Center for Policy Analysis, a right-leaning Dallas-based think tank. Mr. Goodman, who helped craft Sen. John McCain’s health care policy, said anyone with access to an emergency room effectively has insurance, albeit the government acts as the payer of last resort. (Hospital emergency rooms by law cannot turn away a patient in need of immediate care.)
“So I have a solution. And it will cost not one thin dime,” Mr. Goodman said. “The next president of the United States should sign an executive order requiring the Census Bureau to cease and desist from describing any American – even illegal aliens – as uninsured. Instead, the bureau should categorize people according to the likely source of payment should they need care.
“So, there you have it. Voila! Problem solved.”
Not only is the above immoral and duplicitous, it’s not even true. Can you get physical exams at the E.R.? Can you get blood pressure medication from the E.R.? Can you get insulin at the E.R.? Can you get continuing skin cancer prevention from the E.R.?
One thing you CAN get by going to the ER is a mountain of debt. And, because you had to wait until it was an emergency, the bills will be a lot higher than a routine doctor’s visit would have been. The hospitals may not turn you away, but most will do their damnedest to collect what they charge you for their care; it won’t be at the lower rates HMO’s pay, either. And, if you don’t pay fast enough, they’ll blackball your credit. Some hospitals will write off part of the bill if you live at or below poverty level, but the people who can afford to pay, wind up also paying for those to can’t due to higher prices to everyone to cover indigents. Why don’t people get this?