As the number of freestanding ERs grows, so does scrutiny

DALLAS (AP) — Freestanding emergency centers have sprouted in recent years across the suburban landscape, taking root in affluent neighborhoods and directly challenging nearby medical clinics and hospitals.

Critics say they do little to help those in rural America with dire medical needs, siphon away skilled emergency physicians and too often stick patients with overinflated bills.

Groups such as the Texas Association of Freestanding Emergency Centers counter that people are getting an unprecedented level of care as the centers open close to consumers, don't keep them waiting, provide an ER physician around-the-clock, and are equipped for any medical emergency.

The freestanding ERs locate in zip codes with an attractive payer mix, Schuur said, meaning ones where more people are privately insured, have higher incomes and there are fewer Medicaid reimbursements.

A spokesman for the Texas Association of Freestanding Emergency Centers did not return phone messages seeking comment, but John McGee, an association board member, told The Dallas Morning News this month that rules dictating federal reimbursement rates and other regulatory hurdles make it difficult to open locations in poor areas.

Grant Douglass, president of Southwest Medical Associates, which contracts with hospitals and clinics in primarily rural parts of Texas to provide ER physicians, estimates that at least 1,500 doctors have been lured from Texas hospitals with the promise of better pay, less stress and a smaller volume of patients.