Insured and Uninsured
Insurance status has little effect on the types and quantity of care patients receive in the emergency department, a study in the Journal of Emergency Medicine found.
While the authors found no difference between insured and uninsured patients in regard to laboratory tests, length of stay and total charges, they did find that uninsured patients were less likely to receive radiology services. The study speculated that it is likely that uninsured patients would be more aware of the cost of radiographic services and thus more apt to decline them.
The researchers called for policymakers to increase support for sources of primary and ambulatory care targeted at the uninsured, as well as an effort to provide an alternative source of care from EDs for such services (White et al., Journal of Emergency Medicine, February 2007).