More adults in California are flocking to emergency rooms, especially those on Medicaid who are using ERs at a faster rate than the uninsured or privately insured, according to new UC San Francisco research.
The researchers say the findings could reflect a nationwide trend under the Affordable Care Act. Many uninsured people are expected to transition to Medicaid, and as a result, overall emergency department use may increase because Medicaid patients have higher rates of ER use, as the study found. At the same time, some states are proposing cuts to Medicaid or refusing to expand it, which could exacerbate waiting time in the ER.
The analysis will be published as a “Research Letter” on Sept. 18 in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
The study investigated trends in the association between insurance coverage and usage of emergency departments among adults ages 18 to 64.
In California, the number of visits to emergency rooms increased 13.2 percent between 2005 and 2010, from 5.4 million to 6.1 million per year, the researchers reported.
Read more at UCSF.edu