Emergency Response: A Systemic Approach to Diaper Rash, Chest Pain and Medicaid in the ED

31 Pages Posted: 22 Mar 2014 Last revised: 27 Apr 2016

See all articles by Sallie Thieme Sanford

Sallie Thieme Sanford

University of Washington - School of Law; University of Washington - School of Public Health

Date Written: March 1, 2014

Abstract

In an effort to rein in health care costs, states have focused on non-emergent use of the Emergency Department (ED) by people with Medicaid coverage, although this is an issue that cuts across payor groups. Particularly in light of the Affordable Care Act insurance expansions, I argue for a system-based approach that views ER overutilization as less a reflection of poor judgment on the part of patients and more a consequence of poor access to primary care and poor systems for managing the complex circumstances of high utilizers. I describe a state program of seven “best practices,” and argue that sustainably reducing non-emergent ED use — by those with Medicaid and those with private insurance — will require effective implementation of primary care supports found in the ACA and in other initiatives, public and private. This systemic approach is in contrast to the misguided, individualistic approach reflected in proposed state policies that would restrict payment based on the urgency of the diagnosis. The legal, ethical and practical problems of payment-restriction policies are compounded by their failure to directly target the root causes of ED overuse or support transition to a health care system that does.

This paper is part of the Kentucky Law Journal's Special Feature, Medicaid Matters.

Keywords: ACA, health Reform, Medicaid, ER, ED, Emergency Room, Emergency Department, Primary Care

Suggested Citation

Sanford, Sallie Thieme, Emergency Response: A Systemic Approach to Diaper Rash, Chest Pain and Medicaid in the ED (March 1, 2014). Kentucky Law Journal, Vol. 102, No. 2, pp. 441-70, 2013-2014, University of Washington School of Law Research Paper No. 2014-06, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2412292

Sallie Thieme Sanford (Contact Author)

University of Washington - School of Law ( email )

William H. Gates Hall
Box 353020
Seattle, WA 98105-3020
United States

HOME PAGE: https://www.law.washington.edu/directory/profile.aspx?ID=261

University of Washington - School of Public Health

Seattle, WA
United States

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