Laws in more than half the states permit insurers to deny payment for medical services related to alcohol or drug use. Faced with the prospect of not getting paid for care, some ER personnel sidestep the problem by simply not testing patients’ blood or urine for alcohol.
As health-care costs spiral ever upward, hospitals race to build free-standing emergency rooms and expand existing ERs. Hospitals say it makes business sense, but critics say the hospital arms race is too costly for businesses, government and families.
Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland will hold its annual Disaster Readiness Fair this Saturday, Sept. 24th from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m..
Medicaid officials in Washington state are so concerned by hospitals’ ER marketing that they have issued rules making it harder for hospitals to qualify for Medicaid bonus payments if they promote their ER for primary care.
Lower leg strains and sprains accounted for more than 30 percent of emergency room visits, but most are relatively minor and don’t require an ER visit.
ER patients are getting CT scans at rates five times higher than in the mid-1990s, raising questions about whether the test is being overused.
Programs aim to bring palliative care to emergency rooms where end-of-life wishes can be forgotten in the rush to provide treatment.
One Saturday evening when Phil Dyer was puttering around the garden of his home in Issaquah, he felt his heart begin to race, and his throat constricted so much that he could barely breathe. His wife drove him to the emergency department, a freestanding facility two miles away that’s operated by Swedish Medical Center.
Are you ready for the zombie apocalypse? The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has some preparedness tips that may prove helpful when the undead begin to stalk the streets.
Patients aren’t crowding into emergency rooms because they can’t get insurance, say ER physicians, but because they can’t find doctors.
The crisis in Japan highlights the need for communication alternatives during a disaster. The American Red Cross is holding an accelerated Amateur (Ham) Radio Technician Licensing Course starting March 25, 2011, running through the weekend, and ending Sunday night March 27.
Emergency departments trying new approaches to ease crowding. The efforts have added urgency as some experts predict the problem could worsen in coming years.
They worry that as millions of people suddenly gain health coverage in 2014 under the new federal health law, they may have trouble finding primary care doctors and will turn to hospital emergency departments instead.
LocalHealthGuide is a health news and information web service for Seattle and the Puget Sound Region. We are independent and unaffiliated with any hospital, medical association or insurer. If you have questions or if your group has an upcoming event that you would like us to cover, please let us know by going to our "Contact Us" page and dropping us a note. -- Michael McCarthy, Editor
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Lost in translation: Lack of trained interpreters can lead to medical errors
Interpreter services at hospitals and other medical settings are often inadequate, forcing family members, including children, to step in, or the task falls to medical staff members who may not speak the language well.
Some insurers deny ER coverage to people who have been drinking
Laws in more than half the states permit insurers to deny payment for medical services related to alcohol or drug use. Faced with the prospect of not getting paid for care, some ER personnel sidestep the problem by simply not testing patients’ blood or urine for alcohol.
Travel insurance can protect your wallet — and your health on vacation
Think your regular health insurance policy will cover you if you get into medical trouble overseas?
Don’t bet on it.
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