According to the CDC report, more than half (60 percent) of patients arrived after normal business hours (after 5 p.m. on weekdays). One-third of visits were for patients under age 15 or over age 65. Injuries accounted for nearly 30 percent (29.5 percent) of all visits. The highest injury rates were among those aged 75 and older.

“The report also finds that there are large numbers of admitted patients who wait long times for inpatient beds,” said Dr. Gerardi. “Nearly two-thirds of patients waited two or more hours for beds in 2011, and nearly three-quarters of hospitals continued to board patients, even when the emergency department was critically overloaded. Hospitals must move admitted patients out of the emergency department faster to make room for the increasing number of people coming.”

According to the CDC, one-third (33 percent) of emergency departments reported going on ambulance diversion in 2011, and in a positive development, 17 percent of hospitals did not admit elective or scheduled surgical patients when the emergency department went on ambulance diversion. However, more than half of hospitals continued to admit elective or scheduled surgeries even when the ER was on diversion. The lack of flexibility in surgical schedules has been shown to contribute to emergency department crowding, as it limits availability of inpatient beds for patients admitted from the ER.

Even though these newly-released figures from the CDC predate the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), there is already evidence that emergency visits are on the rise now. Nearly half of emergency physicians responding to an ACEP poll in April reported a rise in emergency visits since January 1 when expanded coverage under the ACA began to take effect. Nearly 90 percent expected emergency visits to increase over the next three years, and more than three-fourths (77 percent) said their ERs are not adequately prepared for significant increases.

“Emergency departments occupy a unique place within the American health care system,” said Dr. Gerardi. “We see and treat anyone who needs us, regardless of their ability to pay, and we do so every hour of every day. To our patients, the emergency department is the right place to be at the right time.”