The Crisis in America's Emergency Rooms and What Can Be Done


 

Publication Date: December 2007

Publisher: Heritage Foundation (Washington, D.C.)

Author(s): John S. O'Shea

Research Area: Health

Keywords: Health care; homeland security; Health Insurance; emergency medicine

Type: Report

Coverage: United States

Abstract:

State and federal officials can reduce the burden on emergency departments by expanding patient access to private health insurance, separating emergency services planning from hospital planning, promoting private-sector alternatives for urgent care, and freeing hospitals to specialize in non-emergency medical care, but reform of emergency medical systems should be primarily a state responsibility.