“Amid the worst wave of COVID-19 to date, Texas Freestanding ERs are proving an essential front-line resource for an overwhelmed healthcare system by holding and caring for patients for whom no hospital beds are available. Hospitals across the state are grappling with a lack of ICU bed availability, and Freestanding ERs are consequently taking in patients who would otherwise end up lining hospital hallways, waiting rooms and, in some cases, parking lots.”

“In 2009, the Texas Legislature addressed the concerns of Texans dissatisfied with their emergency care options by licensing Freestanding Emergency Centers, which provided Texans with more accessible, high-quality emergency care choices.”

“TAHP’s false allegations and misstatements are a deliberate distraction from the fact that big insurers continue to benefit themselves by throwing patients and healthcare providers under the bus.”