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How will healthcare reform affect emergency room doctors?

Bob_ModeratorBob_Moderator
edited February 2016 in Obamacare Debates and Opinions Posts: 47
Considering the expected higher number of insured individuals, will emergency medicine change under ObamaCare?  Will the higher number of insured individuals reduce ER visits and thus reduce the demand for emergency room physicians?  Will the job market and pay scales change for ER doctors?
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Comments

  • MaelaloveMaelalove
    Posts: 31
    Emergency room doctors will always be needed, due to the fact that Emergencies will always happened. The insured still go to the emergency room, believe it or not, assuming that the ER is cheaper than their doctor. This won't and hasn't cut us back at all, and pay scales are still billed and set by the physician themselves. 
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  • thash1979thash1979
    Posts: 16
    Ahh, have you been to the ER lately?? I have and lets just say they had plenty of patients sitting in the waiting room. Actually. Probably the busiest I have seen in years. Just because people have insurance now, doesn't mean it is going to cut back on accidents and injuries!
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  • TaraTara
    Posts: 6
    No, ObamaCare will not reduce the need for emergency room physicians. As stated above, people will always have accidents and true medical emergencies. 

    Many of the uninsured used the ER like a primary care doctor. With more and more individuals being covered under Obamacare, they will be able to see a primary care doctor for non emergencies. This will free up ER doctors so that they can spend their times working on actual accidents and medical emergencies.
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  • thash1979thash1979
    Posts: 16
    This is true Tara, I have recently used the ER as a way to get into see a doctor faster. A few months ago I had gallbladder problems and when I called my family doctor, the earliest they could get me in was more than 6 weeks out. With Obamacare and the increase of new patients at my doctor's office, I was out of luck being seen right away. I instead walked my butt into the ER and was seen right away, had a diagnosis, and walked out with a game plan which otherwise would have taken my family doctor a course of 3 months to figure out.
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  • TaraTara
    Posts: 6
    @thash1979: That is interesting. So Obamacare has increased the appointment time at your regular family doctor. I never considered this scenario. I suppose it's an unexpected consequence. Luckily, I haven't had any problems.
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  • TE5LATE5LA
    Posts: 33
    My guess is that ER visits will increase under ObamaCare. This is because people will have to take an extra job just to pay for this crap and they will be very tired and not get enough sleep and wake up late and have to speed to get to their second job on time, thus there will be more accidents.

    ObamaCare is officially the worst healthcare system in the world.
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  • swampwizswampwiz
    Posts: 57
    I would tend to think that there could be a small drop in demand for ER physicians, and then, mostly at the big public and/or teaching hospitals (i.e., the hospitals that takes all the Medicaid funding already.)

    Oh, and TESLA, U R N idiot.
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  • theboysmom04theboysmom04
    Posts: 3
    I've spent a lot of time at the hospital as I'm expecting due in April. There doesn't really appear to be a big change in er patients now compared to before. At least in my area. Unless there have been modifications in the way of handing the patient load so it appears the same number. Our er is always crowded as usual.
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  • mare93mare93
    Posts: 3
    I do not think that ER doctors and new healthcare reforms have anything to do with each other. These are two separeta things. I mean there are several industries affected by the new reforms but not mainly ER doctors or doctors, nurses themselves.
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  • lisasian86lisasian86
    Posts: 9
    It shouldn't really make a difference, emergencies are emergencies and a difference in healthcare insurance won't have any impact on them. Unless of course people start using there regular doctors instead of heading to an ER which can only be a good thing.
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  • rz3300rz3300
    Posts: 70
    Well I skipped right down to the comment section first because I did not want to read an answer before saying that I REALLY REALLY hope that it has no effect whatsoever on the ER doctors.  I hope that no policy or insurance measure or anything effects them.  Nothing but attending to an emergency should occupy their time.  I am not sure if that is the case, but that does seem to be the job title.
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