The Medical Societies of Monroe, Herkimer and Oneida counties; Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency and Excellus BCBS launched the public service campaign in the Rochester and Utica regions.
The campaign features television and radio advertisements urging consumers to call their physicians first for non-urgent issues. The new campaign was launched after an analysis by Excellus BCBS showed that upstate New Yorkers make more than 700,000 ER trips annually for minor medical problems, such as sore throats and ear aches.
Other key findings from the Excellus BCBS report showed that one out of four ER visits in 2009 in which patients were treated and released on the same day was for a medical issue, such as a back problem, that didn’t require care within 12 hours. Another 19 percent of visits were for medical conditions that needed treatment soon, such as ear infections, but could have been treated in a primary care setting.
The analysis also showed potential annual savings for commercially insured patients could range from $8.1 million-$10.7 million if just 5 percent of patients currently going to an ER for minor problems went to a physician’s office instead.
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