Trends and Characteristics of US Emergency Department Visits, 1997-2007

Abstract

Emergency departments (EDs) are unique portals for health care in the United States because services are provided to all persons regardless of insurance or ability to pay.¹ As such, the Institute of Medicine has labeled EDs as “the Safety Net of the Safety Net . . . the provider of last resort for millions of patients who are uninsured or lack adequate access to care from community providers.”² Among all EDs, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) further identified a subset as safety-net EDs because these EDs provide a disproportionate share of services to Medicaid and uninsured persons. Specifically, safety-net EDs are facilities that provide more than 30% of total ED visits to persons with Medicaid, more than 30% of total ED visits to uninsured individuals, or a combined Medicaid and uninsured patient population greater than 40%.³