Emergency Room Visits Continue to Climb under the Health Law
Emergency Room Visits Continue to Climb under the Health Law
Affordable Care Act Fails to Deliver on Promise of Access to Care
(Washington, D.C.) – One of the main premises of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, was that making insurance available to people would decrease the number of emergency room visits across the country. But across the country, America's doctors are experiencing just the opposite.
The American College of Emergency Room Physicians conducted an online poll that found half of its members have seen a rise in emergency room visits since the beginning of this year when coverage began, and 86 percent of those surveyed reported that they expect that number to continue growing. To further exacerbate the problem, emergency rooms must now contend with the shortage of primary care physicians, which is driving individuals who have never previously had insurance to seek attention where they will be seen – the emergency room – instead of receiving care at a practitioner's office. In Philadelphia, visits were 8 percent higher in June of this year than in November of 2013 when people began to enroll via the exchanges. Medicaid expansion, which is set to cost taxpayers more than $700 billion over the next ten years, is also a concern to emergency departments across the country as it is expected to increase visits to the ER.
Daniel Garza, Executive Director of The LIBRE Initiative, released the following statement:
"President Obama and his allies in Congress missed one central point in their flawed attempt to reform healthcare – insurance does not equal access. Among the many issues with our current system are the shortage of primary care physicians, and the lack of information available to individuals when they're trying to make crucial decisions about the care they need. Instead of enabling doctors to respond to the needs of the people and helping Americans understand and navigate the healthcare system, bureaucrats have introduced additional layers of difficulty.
One more study proves what we have known all along: the health care law may have been well-intentioned but it is an unmitigated disaster riddled with unintended consequences and broken promises. Emergency departments across the country are bracing for the worst as they face a surge in patients that are unable to find providers, many whom were unaware of the high premiums and deductibles the so-called 'affordable' care act is hoisting upon them under the most basic plans. This is not what the law promised, and it's not what the American public expects from its elected officials."
Learn more about how the Affordable Care Act is affecting your family and "The Accountability Project" campaign, LIBRE's effort to keep elected officials accountable for supporting the flawed Obamacare law that is causing families everywhere to lose their current health care plan and lose their full time jobs. They are elected to make the right decisions for the people – let's keep them accountable.
For interviews with a LIBRE representative, please contact: Brian Faughnan, 571-257-3309 or Steven Cruz, 202-578-6173
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