| The health care system in the United States has a safety net to provide care for the millions of Americans without health insurance and lack access to care. The safety net system includes hospital emergency departments, federally qualified health centers, and community clinics. With the costs of health care rising, ways to utilize and maximize the effectiveness of safety net providers is critical. One way to conserve costs involves preventing those without insurance from using the emergency room as a primary care provider. This study surveyed two uninsured groups, one using a local free clinic for primary care (n = 54) and one from the community that did not use the free clinic (n = 70). The uninsured group that used the free clinic had a statistically significant lower average of emergency room visits than the uninsured group that did not use the free clinic. The results suggest that providing primary care for the uninsured decreases emergency room usage. |
