This Teen Died of COVID because of no Medicare for All

[IronLionZion]

59. Insurance or not, urgent care is not equipped to treat COVID-19

Even if we had Medicare for all and all else being the same, urgent care still won't be able to treat him. That's just how it works.

ER is the place for emergencies in the American system. They will stabilize him and then transfer to the ICU to save his life. It's not the best way to do it, but that's how it is. Fixing the ER vs urgent care confusion is a separate problem. The ACA actually helped increase the number of urgent care centers all over America to ease the burden on ERs for non-emergencies.

Where having M4A or another universal health insurance plan would save this teen is the ability to call his doctor or the call center of his hospital and ask them where to go. For privileged people like me, my HMO, company, and doctor's office all sent out clear instructions on what to do if we or a loved one is showing COVID-19 symptoms, and that is call them to triage it and they'll admit us into the hospital through an organized process that protects their workers from catching it. I want everyone to have this type of care and opportunity. A public option can help do it.