Medicaid expansion could burden hospital ERs

Many of the 3.9 million people newly enrolled in the Medicaid program will likely lean on emergency rooms for care, putting a burden on hospitals, according to a recently released survey cited by Bloomberg News.

An expansion of Oregon’s Medicaid program five years ago led newly insured patients to visit emergency rooms 40 percent more often than the uninsured, according to the report.

In 2014, 19 million people are expected to join Medicaid, a 35 percent increase compared to those who joined the program in 2013.

Read more from Bloomberg.