Jay wrote on Oct 16, 2008 8:27 PM:Emergency rooms offer free checkups for the uninsured. What a shock.

Melvin wrote on Oct 16, 2008 8:52 PM:Jay: what a masterful comment, proving you didn't even read the article, did you?

The rest of us wrote on Oct 16, 2008 10:14 PM:......we worked for 45 years, now retired on social security, pay for health insurance, pay taxes, scrimp and do without to pay the mortgage and property taxes. Our luxury is a computer though, trying to inform ourselves, have an 'outlet' to the world. Yes, the rest of us might need urgent or ER care too, but we might hesitate even though we HAVE insurance. Why? We pay $100 per month for Medicare Part B, another $300 a month for a Medicare supplement and some drug coverage. Med-i-cal recipients pay nothing. A trip to the ER and hospital admission is not totally covered even with the best 'paid for health insurance'....one broken leg ER visit was $5000 (insurance paid $3300). Two nights in the ER = $6595.43. Our share: $2900+ prescriptions and follow up ortho care. And so on....and darned if I would go to the ER for flu symptoms. Hated to go for the fractured leg, but had no choice - car accident/ambulance responds. Oh, haven't gotten the ambulance charge yet. Ah, the good ole USA 'fair shake' .........

o brother wrote on Oct 17, 2008 6:08 AM:what i find curious in this article is that there is NO mention of undocumented immigrants in the ER. It almost looks like they are avoiding that issue. The ER is the first place they go for care and the only place they take their kids.

DUH wrote on Oct 17, 2008 6:35 AM:Anybody surprised? Us Joe Plumbers been saying this for a long time! To The Rest Of Us post, I feel your pain. Again those of us that work hard and do things right end up paying, or bailing out, those that can't. Doesn't seem fair!

Doing the right thing wrote on Oct 17, 2008 6:48 AM:"The rest of us" hit the nail on the head but put away the hammer too soon. I too, did the right thing and was a dedicated employee of a major company for thirty years. I do have a choice in insurance plans and chose an HMO because it was all I could afford. This major HMO is treating my torn rotator cuff with constant delays, little follow up, and frankly, lack of care. Over all, I would have been better off at the ER. The system is broke. Doctors and hospitals are now a 'business' to make money and not care for patients without money. Perhaps it is time to simply change the name on hospitals to 'shop for care stores'. I don't have the answers except to say the deception of past words could be enlightened if truth was required in titles. One answer and stimulus to this and other problems would be for our government to require public service for all the student loans out there. After high school and especially after receiving student loans - everyone should be required to complete public service. It is that simple...

Murrieta Mom wrote on Oct 17, 2008 7:39 AM:Michael Moore tried to inform the American public of the gross profits being made in this country,funded by those who are on the brink of Health Care Bankruptcy. A not for profit system,increases the Doctors pay and decreases the costs.But the smear campaign against Moore perpetuated by Corporate Health Care stopped many from even seeing the maximize profit theory to health care.Health care issues most not be high end revenue machines for free enterprise.WAKE UP or welcome to the BIG SLEEP!

McCainiac wrote on Oct 17, 2008 7:58 AM:The only way to create change is to bankrupt the insurance companies.Either don't insure yourself and use the free ER or go to the Doctor Daily for a 10 minute chat,which creates a tax on the insurance company.The Government will then come in and pay the"projected profits" to the insurance companies so as not lose any political contributions in the future and completely subsidize the industry as they do in the dairy indutry.Doctors will be killed to create a perfect ratio to patients or vise versa.This will "ENSURE" max efficiency. I can't wait for the future and what it holds for my generation when we will be at that the peak of the health demand curve.

For Melvin wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:02 AM:Just to back up what Jay said, Melvin, here it is "a relatively high number of uninsured patients in the county". Just a PC way of saying it so that the writer gets to keep their job and not step on any toes.

Instead of flaming Jay, why don't you take a trip to your local ER? Go anytime of the day and see for yourself. Right after "do you have insurance?' comes "hablo ingles?". Both answers are followed by "no"......

Senor wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:05 AM:The ER is not meant as a primary care unit in the United States. Tell the Hospitals to collect from the Feds, LOL!!

Political Correctness wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:07 AM:This is the age of political correctness. One is not to mention illegal aliens or their impact on society with regard to certain issues. The ER is one of them.

to doing the right thing wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:07 AM:Your retired,you work for free,I need to get mine while the gettings good? The student loans you talk of are private corporations lending for profit,I don't owe a debt to anyone other than the paper holder.Your argument might be better directed toward grants.Grant recipients should payback a little time to the community funding the program?

America is the only country wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:55 AM:America is the only country in the world where one can go bankrupt from medical bills.

It also has the best health care in the world, if you are ultra wealthy.

The system is very very broken.

To Murrieta Mom wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:02 AM:Why is it folks like you and Mr Moore don't look at other countries who have National Healthcare? Long waits, poor technology etc. Why is it when these leaders and well off people of these countries need major surgeries they come to the US that Mr Moore and folks like you hate? I don't see Mr Moore going to Cuba for his health care nor I don't hear you saying you are. Is it expensive? Yes. Could it be less expensive? Yes. Every company who sells to healthcare increases prices because of admin and they can. Cost cutting needs to start at the universities, and the AMA needs to stop regulating the number of students allowed in the program. This would be a start.

require wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:14 AM:proof of citizenship at ER, and see how many people can actually treat their childrens' runny noses at home themselves.

myturn wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:17 AM:Get the big profit out of healthcare and there might be a chance you don't have to forfeit your paid-off home for medical costs. There should be more Urgent Care Centers around. Urgent Care's will give you a break on the cost if you don't have insurance and the wait time is a lot less.

Old Timer wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:25 AM:Some years ago, health insurance companies were non profit and now are for profit companies that pull down 30% or more profit a year. That is money that should be going into basic care needs. Medical insurance should not be a for profit business. There should be more clinics so people can be directed to a clinic when they go to a hospital. Non citizen medical services should be billed back to the country of orgin and once a year have the books balanced between countries. Everybody shoud pay a co-pay, even if it is only five dollars so everybody knows there is a price to pay for all medical services. There also should be a national health insurance system in place like Australia as an insurance of last resort. This insurance is a state run (much like what congress gets, VA and Medicare) that controls excessive costs and charges a premium and co pay on how much a person can pay. Our current system doesn't work and it is time to fix it as best we can for the good of all American citizens.

No surprise wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:52 AM:Part of the problem is that the on-call doctors SEND you to the ER for a urinary tract infection. Instead of calling in an RX which would be the inexpensive way of treating some afflictions, we are told to go to the ER when we have insurance. That happened to me and I told the on-call doctor that was ridiculous. Why expose yourself to even more illnesses at the ER when all you need is a perscription? Plus, I informed my insurance company that I had been directed to the ER, a much more costly option than a perscription. We have to take control and use our insurance dollars wisely. But, when you don't have insurance, have no intention of paying for health care and expect the public to pick up the tab for your health, the ER seems like a good choice, especially if you are not in the country legally.

Lee Tribadeau for PPH Board wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:54 AM:Turn around the new Palomar Pomerado hospital mess by electing Lee Thibadeau to the PPH Board. Lee had the vision to build a state of the art Civic Center in San Marcos with a City Hall, Library and Community Center at no cost to the taxpayer. The Civic Center was under budget, ahead of schedule, and generates an additional $2.2 million annually in lease income.

Report estimates countys illegal immigrant cost at 256 million in 2006 wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:58 AM:http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/09/08/news/top_stories/19_46_779_7_07.txt

Report 40 percent of countys Medi-Cal births to illegal immigrants wrote on Oct 17, 2008 10:01 AM:NORTH COUNTY ---- A state report quietly released last spring shows illegal immigrants made up the largest single group of those giving birth at taxpayer expense in the state and in San Diego County in 2004. http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2007/01/07/news/top_stories/20_40_021_6_07.txt

JUST NOT TRUE wrote on Oct 17, 2008 11:10 AM:"The document also said children up to age 4, people 85 and older, and blacks had the highest rates of emergency room visits. And children up to 14, blacks and patients covered by MediCal or workers compensation insurance had the highest rate of emergency room visits for non-emergency medical problems, according to the report." Boo Hoo!! So much for the rumor that those illegals are abusing our emergency rooms! But I am sure they won't be convinced by this data, because they want to believe the lies propagated by those who hate Latinos.

To require wrote on Oct 17, 2008 11:34 AM:This is still America, right!! What do you mean require proof of citizenship? Since when does any human being in need of medical attention need to prove citizenship? Did you not read the article?

old news wrote on Oct 17, 2008 12:26 PM:To comments posted at 9:58 and 10:01 I am sure you are the same person. Once again taking reports out of context to confuse the readers. We must also look at the the contributions by the illegals in order to get a fair view on this subject. There are always two sides to every story however I am know you feel better by spreading lies. Just because you say it does not make it true. Plus these articles are old news give me new stats for 2008 rather than reports from 2004 and 2006. Wow that many births to illegal immigrants we have lots of new American citizens!!! This article clearly states that blacks use the emergency more than any other group. Do you know how to read?

Encinitas wrote on Oct 17, 2008 12:49 PM:Low cost clinics are needed. We'll probably have to subsize them, but it would be less expensive in the long haul than emergency care. The triage nurse at the ER should be able to refer folks to these clinics and turn them away from the ER. Eventually folks will get the idea and go directly to the clinics (which should have extended hours for those who work) instead of the ER.

To To require wrote on Oct 17, 2008 1:14 PM:I agree. If they are illegal they should get seen. Then hold them until the bill is paid whether in the hospital or in jail. That's what they do in Mexico. I take that back, they don't see you in Mexico until you pay!

RG wrote on Oct 17, 2008 1:34 PM:A report such as this is incomplete without including stats showing the illegal alien affect. This article, and others regarding ER problems carefully avoid using the word illegal. There is much speculation on both side of the illegal issue, but data is carefully withheld. Yes, in a TRUE emergency, service would/should be provided, but we're discussing UNNECESSARY/NON-EMERGENCY issues where ER facilities are misused. The real effect of illegal use? Who knows, or will admit to it?

Skip wrote on Oct 17, 2008 4:00 PM:I went to the San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency web pages, but I could not find the report that this story was based on. From my personal experiences most times I have been to an Emergency Room, there were a lot of people who did not speak English. I did find some interesting reports on TB and Communicable diseases.
I guess they just never got around to posting this report yet.


http://www2.sdcounty.ca.gov/hhsa/DocSearchResults.asp?DocumentTypeID=5

To JUST NOT TRUE wrote on Oct 17, 2008 4:03 PM:Since a direct link is not being provided to this document, I have to withold judgement of its' validity. in the meantime I can go by what I see, and I know Illegal Aliens are a big part of the picture.

R/ Skip

Suzie wrote on Oct 17, 2008 5:03 PM:As long as Medi-Cal continues to have a poor reimbursement rate for physicians, we will have over used emergency rooms, and higher health care costs than necessary. If Medi-Cal paid a physician a reasonable amount for an office visit, they would accept Medi-Cal, then those people on Medi-Cal would have primary physicians and not have to use the ER for basic medical care. The problem is in our system of reimbursement. Like it or not, medical care is a business, and if you can't make a living providing medical care, you won't stay in business. If you can't get a plumber to your house for under $100, why would you expect to get a physicians time for less than that?

Pravda wrote on Oct 17, 2008 6:33 PM:I think the NCT forgets who reads and buys their printed paper. With the obvious censorship from your screener omitting the true feelings of the posters I strongly suggest you start printing this rag in Spanish.

Concerned wrote on Oct 17, 2008 7:51 PM:The NCT would never avoid the illegal alien issue.

UnInsured and Curious wrote on Oct 17, 2008 8:54 PM:My son broke his collar bone in 3 places and needed ER care. We went to Tri-City late on a Saturday afternoon and were surprised to find a virtually empty ER. We were seen, treated and released in approximately 2 hours (albeit a bit longer than it should have been). The final bill ... that included the ER Visit, ER Doctor, Prescriptions, Follow Up Care and X-Rays ... was just shy of $1600.

I paid the bills and now am curious, after reading the post by DO THE RIGHT THING at 6:48am ... what would it have cost if I actually had insurance? Tri-city gave me a 20% discount for paying cash. I've wasted no monthly premiums and apparently come out ahead of the a fore mentioned insurance holder. Maybe health insurance isn't all it's cracked up to be after all?

vistalandowner wrote on Oct 17, 2008 9:28 PM:My father, suffering from cancer pain, went to Tri City for some help a few months before he died, there were so many illegals there he laid outside on a bench for 7 hours to be seen, finally gave up and went home suffering.No big deal? This is a man who fought for his country in Korea and China, his grandpa fought in WW1 , his great great great grandfather was in the war between the states, and his great grandfather fought in the war for independence with England. NONE of these men fought for people who came here illegally a few months or years ago to get a good deal from the blood these men shed, they did it for their kids, grandkids, and so on. This is the great tragedy of the situation. We should all be ashamed to let this hard fought freedom and rights be squandered on people who don't have the guts to make their own situation better but come here and steal our forefathers hard earned rights and gifts to their children. Shame on us! SHAME!

ER Visits wrote on Oct 17, 2008 10:41 PM:I was in the ER a few weeks ago with my father and the guy in the bed next to my fathers was being treated for an ingrown toenail...it doesn't end here though. I used to work in a pharmacy and we would see people bringing in ER prescriptions to treat colds, constipation, etc. The thing about MediCal is that over the counter stuff is covered if you have a prescription for it...we're talking things like Robitussin, Peptol Bismol, and even CONDOMS. Yes, condoms are covered under MediCal if the MD writes a prescription for it...I can still remember filling out these "prescriptions" and seeing exactly how my hard-earned tax money was/is spent on flagrant abusers.

To Uninsured and Curious wrote on Oct 17, 2008 11:17 PM:sorry about your son but be thankful that all he had was a badly broken collar bone and not a life threatening illness/injury requiring months or possibly years of treatment. You "came out ahead" because your son's injury, fortunately, was relatively minor. Had it not been, you'd be selling your house right now just to come up with a down payment on the medical bills.

Skip wrote on Oct 21, 2008 5:42 PM:The San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency web pages still have not posted this report, but I di find an interesting report entitled "AIDS in Hispanics, San Diego County 2008".

It is a real eye opener and it freely discusses occurences among foreign born peoples.

http://www2.sdcounty.ca.gov/hhsa/documents/AIDS_in_Hispanics2008.pdf