One of the real problems with Ebola and U.S. hospitals is

[MineralMan]

12. We don't disagree on this.

Putting profit before health care is the problem. It is an almost uniquely American problem.

Being the first hospital to have an Ebola patient walk into the ER is part of the problem, too, of course. There was bound to be one that would be the first to be faced with an actual Ebola patient. What happened there could have happened at any random hospital in the country. We're not really good at preparing for extremely unlikely situations. It's expensive and complicated to do so.

And Ebola is very unlikely to be an issue in most places, so the problem will continue to be a real one in many areas. Still, our major cities really, really need to put a strategy in place yesterday. I think that message is becoming clear. Smaller cities probably don't face the same risk, and will probably decide not to make the preparations, though.

No matter what happens, numbers and odds will still be part of the consideration. We have a private health care industry. Individual facilities make whatever decisions they choose to make. We have no way to force compliance with anything, really.