A friend of mine, employed and with health insurance, was sent home from the emergency room after a fall in which he fractured vertebrae in his neck. He wasn't even given a brace. He has been in a wheelchair ever since getting taking back to a different hospital a few hours later. Yes, lawsuits were filed. Negligence happens, with or without health care insurance. He is still working on rehab and now can walk a few steps with a walker, but it has literally been years.