The Los Angeles Times (1/28, Yoshino) reports that emergency department (ED) physicians "filed a class-action lawsuit against the state Tuesday, saying that California's overstretched emergency healthcare system -- which ranks last in the country for emergency care access -- is on the verge of collapse unless more funding is provided." A number of the state's "hospitals and" EDs "have shut their doors in the last decade, leading to long waits, diverted ambulances and, in the most extreme cases, patient deaths." ED physicians "say they have been particularly hard hit by the state's low Medi-Cal reimbursement rates. Unlike other doctors who can choose not to accept Medi-Cal patients," ED physicians "are required by federal law to treat every patient who walks through the door, regardless of their ability to pay." The Times points out, "In 2007 alone," ED physicians "statewide say they have subsidized more than $100 million in services provided to Medi-Cal patients because the reimbursement rate often barely covers half the cost of treatment."
The AP (1/28, Mohajer) adds that "the suit seeking class action status was filed in Superior Court on behalf of five groups" that Raymond Boucher, a lawyer for the physicians, "said are top providers of emergency care in the state: Centinela Freeman Emergency Medical Associates, Valley Presbyterian Emergency Medical Associates, Valley Emergency Medical Associates, Sutter Emergency Medical Associates, and Valley Emergency Physicians Medical Group." In a recent study, "the American College of Emergency Physicians ranked California last in access to emergency care, taking into account the number of emergency physicians in the state, percentage of doctors who accept public health insurance and the number of hospital closures." Additionally, "the study also found that California has 7.1 emergency departments for every one million residents, compared to a national average of 19.9."
The American College of Emergency Physicians recently "issued a statement saying" EDs "become more crucial during times of economic difficulty," according to the Orange County Register (1/28, Perkes).
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