Quote from oldtime:
the doctor can only treat so many poor people out of his own pocket before he finally has to start raising your rates.
you don't get the bill, the poor person gets the bill
then it goes to collections
and if there is enough of them he can declare medical bankruptcy
in some cases the poor patient may be unconscious, so he is really not given the choice if he wants to be a leech or wait until he has saved up enough money to get his heart going again
in some cases yes, they have no choice, in most cases they do. especially an 80 year old man who can have a living will and a 'do not resucitate' card
If the poor and elderly had more honor, we would not have to have this discussion since the costs would be about half. The poor would stop behaviors that are counterproductive (drugs and young girls with an out of wedlock pregnancy- the two leading causes of poverty), and the elderly would stop critical end of life care.
Doctors tell me that they hate medicaid patients. They are belligerant with an entitled attitude.