Ambulatory Medical Care Statistics

From the Centers for Disease Control (CDC): "Patients in the United States made an estimated 1.1 billion visits to physician offices and hospital outpatient and emergency departments in 2006, an average of four visits per person per year, according to new health care statistics released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) released two reports that describe trends in health care visits, including emergency room and hospital use and waiting times:

National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: 2006 Emergency Department Summary

Ambulatory Medical Care Utilization Estimates for 2006

Source: Stobbe, M., Associated Press (6 Aug. 2008). "Average ER waiting time nears 1 hour, CDC says." Seattle Post-Intelligencer.