Hospitals Suffering From Lack Of Patients
One might expect health care to be one industry safe from the ups and downs of the recession; after all, people never stop getting sick. However, this thread from Salon points to a frightening possibility: widespread closings of hospitals as beds go empty.
Hospitals, doctors, and dentists are of late experiencing a shortfall of patients, as people who have been laid off lose their insurance (and thus the ability to pay for treatment). If the numbers stay grim, hospitals and heath care centers will be forced to close (further reducing access to health care) or lay off doctors and nurses — who will then join the ranks of the unemployed and uninsured, contributing to the downward-rolling snowball of misfortune. But…at least we don’t have to wait in line for the doctor like in Canada.
