Reply #43: They should see a doctor

[Juche]

Which is why I support free primary care and urgent care clinics, or at the very least heavily subsidized ones.

Bernie Sanders had a bill where for $14 billion over 5 years (so about $3 billion a year) you increase access to public primary care from 20 million to 45 million. 25 million people getting primary care for 3 billion a year. It is a pretty good deal.

An investment of $50 billion a year would probably provide universal primary care and urgent care to almost everyone who wanted it. Maybe less than that.


So my point is again, establish public financing of universal primary care and universal urgent care (the same way we have universal access to medicare at 65). Then let people go to the primary or urgent care clinic instead of the ER for non-life threatening illnesses. It will cost less. The savings from lower ER visits alone would probably pay for universal primary care and universal urgent care. Not to mention the higher quality of life and fewer uncontrolled chronic illnesses.


http://sanders.senate.gov/newsroom/news/?id=30b2a415-4ade-4367-af7d-4c3306e31b58

WASHINGTON, December 19 – A $10 billion investment in community health centers, expected to go to $14 billion when Congress completes work on health care reform legislation, was included in a final series of changes to the Senate bill unveiled today.

The provision, which would provide primary care for 25 million more Americans, was requested by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).

He said the additional resources will help bring about a revolution in primary health care in America and create new or expanded health centers in an additional 10,000 communities. The provision would also provide loan repayments and scholarships through the National Health Service Corps to create an additional 20,000 primary care doctors, dentists, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and mental health professionals.

Very importantly, Sanders also said the provision would save Medicaid tens of billions of dollars by keeping patients out of emergency rooms and hospitals by providing primary care when then needed it.