Ever wonder why anyone who shows up at an ER must be treated? The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) is an unfunded Federal law that forces ER's to treat anybody that shows up on their door step. No insurance - you're treated. No money - you're treated.
Ever wonder who pays? Community hospitals. EMTALA cost community hospitals almost $40 billion in 2010. Now they're hitting back. Now they're allowing debt collectors to masquerade as ER staff to bully the sick and squeeze them for every last cent BEFORE they get treated. I understand the frustration of the hospitals. I understand someone must pay. But c'mon, we spend two trillion a year on health care. Two trillion! Yet here we are harassing the sick and the dying in emergency rooms. Jesus wept. Health reform NOW!!!
