Data Highlights Growing Importance of Emergency Rooms

Kenneth “Ken” Mwatha, MD, treats patients in need of emergency care at a hospital in Baltimore. Board-certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine, Ken Mwatha, MD, also affiliates with the American College of Emergency Physicians.

In a September 2017 press release, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) reported on data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Providing further evidence of the importance of ERs, the data showed the number of emergency visits in the United States exceeded 141 million in 2014, a more than 10 million increase from the previous year and the highest recorded total in history. 

The ACEP points to the implementation of the Affordable Care Act as the reason for the jump in emergency visits. In fact, 2014 marked the first year that patients covered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program received more care in ERs than any other insured or uninsured group. According to Becky Parker, MD, president of the ACEP, trips to the ER are expected to rise further, as forthcoming data will likely show the number of annual emergency visits moved past 150 million in 2016.

Beyond the growth in the amount of emergency care, the CDC data elucidated a positive trend of patients coming to ERs with severe and complex issues, as opposed to those seeking nonemergency care. Despite the increase in emergency visits and the level of treatment needed, the ACEP reports that waiting times continue to fall, with nearly a third of patients seeing a medical professional in less than 15 minutes.