Emergency physicians are forced to see every patient, and thus, are at the mercy of cutbacks in California’s Medi-Cal reimbursements.

Often times, they are paid at half the cost of treatment. With well-publicized stories of patients dying in the waiting rooms, or while waiting to see a physician, doctors are responding by suing the state for $100 million because additional funding is needed to maintain patient safety. This is more symbolic act than anything else, since the state doesn’t really have any money left.

Compounding this problem is California’s ban on balance billing, which only adds to the financial woes.

The combination of non-competitive reimbursement and the relatively expensive California housing market is driving doctors out of the state. The already precarious care that patients receive in a California emergency room (via GruntDoc) is about to get worse.