Hospitals in Arkansas See Drop In Uninsured ER Visits Following Obamacare Implementation

[Stuart G]

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2014/05/16/3438782/hospitals-arkansas/

Think Progress
May 16.
By Igor Volsky

Preliminary survey results from Arkansas show a significant drop in the number of uninsured since the implementation of the state’s so-called private option, a compromise hammered out between Gov. Mike Beebe (D), Republican state lawmakers, and the Obama administration to provide health care coverage to low-income residents.

Data released on Thursday from 42 hospitals show that emergency room visits dropped by 2 percent, “while the number of uninsured patients in those emergency rooms dropped by 24 percent,” the Associated Press notes.

Erik Dorey, a spokesperson for Sen. Mark Pryor (D-AR), said that the survey results indicated that the state’s implementation of health care reform is successfully providing insurance coverage to Arkansas families. “Because of Arkansas’ private option, 150,000 working families already know the security of quality coverage, and its successful implementation is a credit to Republicans and Democrats in Arkansas coming together to pass it into law,” Dorey said in a statement to ThinkProgress.

[lostincalifornia]

1. What they should also see is a drop in non emergency visits to the ER, especially in states that

extended Medicaid.

That was one of the big problems people were using ERs for non emergency reasons.

The ACA should reduce that greatly, and ERs should be used for what they were intended, emergencies

[IronLionZion]

3. They should also see more non-emergency walk in clinics opening up

because when more people have insurance, there's more demand for these types of services. Also I suspect the triage nurses/staff in the ERs will inform insured people of their options for nonemergency care for next time. Insurance companies provide this info as well to their new members. And that should reduce ER usage.

[lostincalifornia]

4. absolutely

[Stuart G]

5. Lots of Walk in Clinics in Illinois...but I beleve fewer visits to the ER are very important.

Why? Because the ER is the most expensive place to treat illnesses. People who get preventive care, thru walk ins, or regular visits, will be healthier and spend a whole lot less. and less is better

[sinkingfeeling]

2. Somebody ought to send this to Tommy Moll, Teabagger, who is running for the

House. His single ad states that , "Obamacare threatens our liberty and our prosperity."