HMA's Emergency Room Pain

Florida Recount

To be fair, some hospitals would be happy to shed a little E.R. business. After all, uninsured patients often flock to E.R. departments that -- by law -- must treat them, regardless of their ability to pay.

But a recent study in Florida, a major market for most hospital companies, offered up some surprising results. Notably, the study found, the vast majority of patients who receive E.R. treatment do, in fact, carry some form of health insurance. Moreover, it found, those patients often seek E.R. care for minor problems such as coughs, fevers and headaches -- the very ailments that retail clinics can treat for far less.

On average, the study determined, E.R.'s charge $239 for the treatment of minor problems. In contrast, retail clinics have started charging as little as $50 for similar service.

Those clinics have attracted huge crowds of patients who -- insured or not -- can afford the lower bills. The largest chain, known as MinuteClinic, has treated more than half a million customers since its launch a few years ago. It operates 91 clinics, most of them in stores owned by new parent CVS, and plans to keep expanding.

Meanwhile, retail heavyweight Wal-Mart has been opening multiple clinics of its own. The company's new plan to sell dirt-cheap generic drugs should only help that business -- and drive even more traffic into its stores -- going forward.