[tvjunky]

This is exactly right. I live in a large TX metro area and we're inundated with these "ER in a Box" facilities. We also have at least three major full service hospitals in that 5 mile radius. The majority of these places are just a re-branding, with higher fees, of the older "Doc in box" model. Over and over again we hear stories of people visiting these places for fairly minor things, like stitches or back pain that are slapped with $2000 bills because they are "out of network" or coded as ER visits. If you have a real emergency, they call 911 and have you transported.