Emergency Departments in the Health Care System: Use of Services in California and the United States

Publication Date: November 2002

Publisher: California HealthCare Foundation

Author(s): Policy and Management University of Southern California. Center for Health Financing

Research Area: Health

Type: Brief

Coverage: California

Abstract:

Changes in the financing and delivery of health care in California have strained the state's health care system, including emergency and trauma services. To better understand the ability of emergency departments to meet demands, accurate information about use, capacity, financing, and waiting times is essential. In this report, researchers from the USC Center for Healthcare Financing, Policy, and Management used hospital data from the California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development and the National Center for Health Statistics to profile who uses emergency services, why patients go to emergency departments (EDs), and which services they receive. The report compares California ED use with that of the rest of the nation and includes a profile of ED patients that emerged from the study. Results from this study pose important health care delivery policy questions concerning whether EDs are being used cost-effectively in their role in the overall delivery system.