US hospitals can't turn away people at the doors.
If somebody walks in sick they have to be treated whether they have money or not.
If they have insurance the hospital will charge the insurance company who then will turn around and possibly make the patient pay for not alerting them they are checking into some expensive hospital.
If they are poor and have no insurance the hospital bills the government.
Healthcare markets are complex and confusing places. But one fact is simple and straightforward: all else equal, hospitals and emergency departments are a lot more expensive than outpatient clinics. Which makes it all the more bewildering that so many low income patients prefer hospitals over...
www.forbes.com