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Show: June 17, 2012:
- Can Facebook have an impact on the organ donor shortage?
- Can friendships foster fitness among children?
- Is health care always available at the emergency room?
- What is the value of a hospital autopsy?
- Can creativity impact your health?
- Does DNA sequencing have the potential to predict the incidence of illness?
- Is the Y chromosome truly shrinking?
- View all topics for the week
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Is health care always available at the emergency room?
Host: Barbara Lewis
Interview: Aaron E. Carroll, M.D., associate professor and vice chair of health policy and outcomes research in the department of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine
The commonly held belief that uninsured people can always receive care in the emergency room is what Aaron Carroll, M.D., attempted to dispel in his recent opinion article on the CNN website. Dr. Carroll discusses how “emergency medical condition” can have a very narrow definition among different care providers, jeopardizing a patient's chance of receiving treatment in an emergency room. He also discusses the threat to overall health for those who rely solely on emergency care, which lacks any preventative care or screenings.
Additional Resources:
- Others across the country has promoted universal health care to better provide care as noted by experts at Arizona State University among others.
- Read Dr. Carroll’s article about ER usage and the health care gap in full on CNN.
