13 January 2012  Washington Medicaid vs Prudent Layperson
Scruffy Scirocco said...  What is the solution to keeping
Emergency rooms exclusively for emergencies? Obviously,
respiratory distress, cardiac distress, unstoppable bleeding,
trauma, unconsciousness, stroke symptoms should all be ER
admissions, regardless of the final diagnosis.  The problem is
in our tort system. Legally, an ER would be crazy to turn away a
patient, no matter how frivolous and non-emergent their state
apparently is, because to do so would open up a path to a
lawsuit that would cost more to defend against than it would be
to just treat the idiot and send them on their way.  There needs
to be a set of guidelines established, with a certain amount of
flexibility, wherein a triage nurse can reject a patient and
refer them to a non-emergency facility. This needs to be
supported by the courts, with penalties for frivolous lawsuits.
You and I are on opposite sides of the political spectrum, but I
agree that doctors should be ma