根据美国约翰·霍普金斯大学发布的实时统计数据显示，截至北京时间3月29日16时21分，美国新冠肺炎确诊病例达124,686例，死亡2,191例。而在上周，加利福尼亚州兰卡斯特市的一例死亡病例引发了美国国内广泛关注。3月18日，兰卡斯特市一名17岁少年病重后因抢救无效去世，报告显示这名少年的新冠病毒检测呈阳性。在一则情况通报视频里，兰卡斯特市长雷克斯·帕里斯表示这名少年出现呼吸障碍后，家人将其送到了急救中心，结果急救中心却因为他没有医保而拒绝收治他。帕里斯说在转送至公立医院的途中，男孩就发生了心脏骤停。虽然最后送到了医院，但为时已晚。医生们全力抢救，也只维持了男孩六小时生命。A teen from Lancaster, California on March 18 died after being denied treatment from an urgent care clinic because he lacked health insurance. The 17-year-old boy tested positive for COVID-19.According to Lancaster Mayor Rex Paris, The boy's family initially sent him to an urgent care facility as he started experiencing respiratory issues. However, the boy was turned away because he didn't have insurance and was told to go to a public hospital instead. The boy went into cardiac arrest en route to the public hospital, according to the mayor, but when the boy finally got to the hospital, it was too late to save his life. The doctors could only keep him alive for about six hours, the mayor said. 3月24日，洛杉矶郡公共卫生部将这位少年列为因感染新冠肺炎去世的患者。然而，在24日晚间，公共卫生部又发布了新声明，声称“这一病例病情复杂，尽管此前病毒检测呈阳性，但他的死因可能有其他可能性，本案例将由美国疾控中心重新核查”。3月25日，洛杉矶郡公共卫生部再次表示，鉴于目前少年“死因未定”，将其从当地新冠肺炎死亡病例名单中移除。
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health attributed the boy’s death to novel coronavirus Tuesday. Later that evening, officials backpedaled, saying his case needs more review by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In a statement Tuesday night, the health authorities said it's looking into the case further. "Though early tests indicated a positive result for Covid-19, the case is complex and there may be an alternate explanation for this fatality.” Los Angeles County health officials said Wednesday that they no longer included the boy in the tally of coronavirus deaths until they do more to determine his precise cause of death.尽管如此，兰开斯特市长帕里斯却十分担忧与这名少年生前有过密切接触的人存在感染的风险。在接受CNN采访时，帕里斯提到这名少年的一位朋友和朋友的父亲，新冠病毒检测均呈阳性。他还表示，目前仍不清楚这名少年的家人是否知道其死因是感染了新冠肺炎。在葬礼上，少年的父亲还与来宾有拥抱、握手等密切接触。However, a friend of the teen who attends Lancaster High School also tested positive for coronavirus, Paris said during an interview by CNN. So did the friend's father. Besides, the mayor also said it is unclear whether the family knew the teen had died of coronavirus. The teen's father is also concerned for the people who were hugging and shaking hands at the funeral. People sit on a hill overlooking Dodger Stadium and downtown Los Angeles on March 26, 2020. /Getty Image虽然目前少年的死因“有待疾控中心进一步核查”，有不少人认为这一死亡事件敲响了“警钟”。加利福尼亚州州长加文·纽森和当地一些卫生部门官员提醒年轻人应当加强防范，这一死亡事件“说明新冠病毒能感染各个年龄段的人”。Gavin Newsom, California Governor and other state health officials previously said that the death case highlighted the risk to young people and cited it as evidence the virus can strike anyone. 3月28日，伊利诺伊州公共卫生部门负责人恩戈齐·艾奇克证实，芝加哥一名婴儿感染新冠病毒后死亡。艾奇克表示，美国之前未出现过婴儿因新冠肺炎死亡的病例，这名婴儿的死因正在调查当中。她也呼吁人们提高警惕引起重视：“我们必须尽所有努力防止病毒蔓延，不只为保护自己，也要保护身边的人……如果你还没有引起重视，也许这件事能让你警醒。”Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike confirmed on Saturday a Chicago baby died from the novel coronavirus, reminding people to keep alert towards the virus. "There has never before been a death associated with COVID-19 in an infant. A full investigation is underway to determine the cause of death," Ezike said. "We must do everything we can to prevent the spread of this deadly virus. If not to protect ourselves, but to protect those around us…If you haven’t been paying attention, maybe this is your wake-up call."兰卡斯特17岁少年因为没有医保而耽误治疗的消息，也让不少美国网友对现行的医保制度感到不满。“别忘了，在美国医疗保险就是一门生意。”
“这一例子证明我们的医保制度失败了。”
“你要明白美国的医保制度下，医疗机构是为了获取利润而不是提供医疗卫生服务。”
据美国人口统计局2018年的统计结果显示，约有2750万美国人没有医疗保险。About 27.5 million people in the country live without health insurance, according to the statistics from U.S. Census Bureau in 2018. 此前，在接受《纽约时报》采访时，世界卫生组织专家布鲁斯·艾尔沃德（Bruce Alyward）也曾提到美国当前的医保体系“是速度上的障碍”。高昂的检测和救治费用，使得不少民众会因为犹豫而耽误检测或救治，对防控疫情非常不利。Bruce Aylward, an expert of the World Health Organization (WHO) commented that the healthcare system in the U.S. is "a barrier to speed" during an interview with the New York Times. He pointed out that, under the current system, the high cost for COVID-19 test or treatment might make some people hesitate to go to the hospitals, which will wreak havoc in the combat against the virus. 不过也有网友指出，因没有医保而拒绝接诊，急救中心的这一做法属于违法行为。
美国1986年通过的《紧急医疗护理和劳动法》规定，医疗机构不得因病人无医保或无支付能力而拒绝接诊、限制治疗或将其转移至其他医疗机构。The Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), a U.S. Congressional Act passed in 1986, prevents hospitals from denying or limiting treatment to patients based on their insurance status or ability to pay and transferring them to other facilities.