Emergency room visits hit record high in two decades

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that visits to emergency rooms (ER) increased nearly 10 percent during 2009, the largest increase since the government began tracking such data nearly two decades ago, according to FierceHealthcare. They jumped to more than 136 million in 2009, compared to less than 124 million in 2008. Officials attribute it to increased demand for services and more efficient processing of patients who visit ERs. Article