How can some folks feign surprise at this “revelation”?
They were told repeatedly that this would happen
More patients flocking to ERs under Obamacare
It wasn’t supposed to work this way, but since the Affordable Care Act took effect in January, Norton Hospital has seen its packed emergency room become even more crowded, with about 100 more patients a month.
That 12 percent spike in the number of patients — many of whom aren’t actually facing true emergencies — is spurring the Louisville hospital to convert a waiting room into more exam rooms.
“We’re seeing patients who probably should be seen at our (immediate-care centers),” said Lewis Perkins, the hospital’s vice president of patient care and chief nursing officer. “And we’re seeing this across the system.”
That’s just the opposite of what many people expected under Obamacare, particularly because one of the goals of health reform was to reduce pressure on emergency rooms by expanding Medicaid and giving poor people better access to primary care.
Instead, many hospitals in Kentucky and across the nation are seeing a surge of those newly insured Medicaid patients walking into emergency rooms.
Bad gas? Go to the ER.
Skinned knee? Go to the ER.
When people think something is free, they use more of it. Sadly, more and more of them are finding that it is NOT actually free and are skipping out on these new, unnecessary ER visit bills, leading to more problems for hospitals, and not less.
When you want something done right, the last people you want to ask for help is your government.