In 2011, a homeless man who was sleeping in his car, had the medical problems of an old man, though he was only 40.
That year, he visited the emergency room in Portland 15 times — and was admitted to the hospital 11 times.
As part of the nation’s health care overhaul, Oregon has been given permission to conduct its own experiments.
The results show that the state can save a lot of money: Mr. Seals’ ER visits dropped to just four.
(READ the story, or Listen, at NPR)