Radio Netherlands Worldwide

This story seems to be missing the first word in the designation for the specified group of people: Illegal. At least one country "drive[s] a hard bargain with immigrants in need of treatment". In the US illegal immigrants do not have Social Security numbers so it is very difficult for hospitals to collect from them. Emergency rooms are required by law to treat them, but emergency room care is MUCH more expensive than regular doctors office visits. This is one of the reasons medical care is so expensive in the US. The cost of an emergency room visit is, on average, 5 times more expensive than a regular doctor's office visit. Coupled with the fact that most hospitals can't collect these bills, leads to much higher insurance premiums for everyone. The illegal immigrants do not pay taxes, they send the Dollars (Euros) they earn back to their home countries, yet they continue to demand services from the countries they reside in illegally. Taxpayers owe them nothing. Cost of Emergency Room Care