tj, I will post you some articles about drug financing if you want to look at them. it will help to understand what the reality is.
as for uninusred in the ER, its another really big lie.
To understand it better, you have to look at the why it happens and what percentage of the er bills which the "uninsured " rack up are from emergency or non emergency stuff
as for getting the uninsured out of emergency rooms, simply change the laws that say emergency care must be provided for, which was instituted by court ruling fiat. Other wise you have to live with it one way or another. Because the "insurance" from Mcain or Obama is not going to cover it
Even if the uninsured go to ER's now, they are billed you know, its just impossible to collect. And every state I have ever lived in which includes quite a few always had free walk in clinics .
they just were not attended. there is usually no reason to go to the ER in the first place, if you availed yourself of what is provided, and you didnt need ER care really
Except for a big reason. most of the uninsured costs in ER's are from ER stuff: Every thursday, friday and saturday night in Bellvue in NY the knifings, gunshots wounds and beatings are brought in at a relentless pace. these are big ticket items which require surgery and prolonged convalesecence and a lot of intensive care. it costs a lot. One gun shot in an ER costs the same as 100 asthma patients . Its the same in every city hospital all over the usa.
Who pays for the auto accidents, the drug gangs, the rapes and homicides?
YOU DO
and 5000 dollars of health insurance isnt going to pay for it, since a single stay for an blunt head wound is going to be about 250K
