This ER in Atlanta is betting that you will.

Taking advantage of worsening patient wait times in emergency departments, the Emory Adventist Hospital is offering a “Hold my place in line” service.

For a fee of $24.99, patients are guaranteed to be see in 15 minutes or less – or the entire visit is free.

It seems to me like shrewd business, and the blatant beginning of tiered emergency service. However, WhiteCoat observes this may be a violation of EMTALA laws, which states that a screening exam needs to be performed in all patients in a non-discriminatory manner: “[It will] be interesting to see whether CMS jumps in if a patient who couldn’t afford the $25 co-pay had to sit longer at the back of the line and experienced a bad outcome.”