A new study from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research has found that while people enrolled in low-income insurance programs may visit emergency rooms frequently after becoming enrolled, their visit rate falls drastically within 12 months.
Researchers found patients who hadn't sought medical care before enrolling in an insurance program for low-income people visited the ED at a rate of 60 percent in the first three months after enrolling in the program. Within one year, that rate was 25 percent, and within two years it was 18 percent.
While the study seems to suggest insurance expansions under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act may have beneficial effects on population health and that increased ED visit rates among low-income patients won't stay elevated, ED visits have been on the rise nationally for the past 20 years, according to a report from the Los Angeles Times.
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