I'm looking for evidence that socialized medicine does not increase "frivolous" visits.

[alarimer]

2. First of all, the uninsured already go to the ER for non-emergency care.

They don't have regular doctors they can go to. Or they wind up in the ER because the condition has worsened because they can't afford to go to the doctor without insurance.

Treating a condition at the doctor's office is usually much less expensive than waiting until it is an actual emergency. ER visits are expensive, no matter the reason, so having socialized medicine should lower expenses, not raise them, even with the fact that more people will be seeking medical care once they can afford to.

Having some sort of single payer will cost each of us much less than whatever we are paying now. I would prefer a system that also controls costs, by limiting what providers can actually change. But it would also remove the differential between what insurance companies pay for a procedure or visit and what the uninsured are charged for that same visit. Right now, insurance pays the provider peanuts, relatively speaking, and charges the uninsured more to make up for it (not they always get because you can't get blood from a stone.)