There are free and cheap clinics popping up in lots of places. Even some wal-marts now have independent clinics in them.
So why not use the e-room for non-emergency issues? Expense is the big one. Far too Americans already go to the emergency room for non-emergency use and that pushes costs up for people with real emergencies. If you have a cough, don't go the damn e-room for that. Are you sneezing? Don't go to the e-room. Save that triage slot at the e-room for somebody that's having serious chest pains.
Overuse of the e-room for non-emergency issues is bad and it's getting worse. In 1996, 67 million Americans went to the e-room. In 2006, the number was 119 million. That just don't jive with natural rate of population increase. The last thing we need to is to tell more people to go for more non-emergency issues.
The rEVOLution is not being televised
