There are a host of reasons why I want to avoid the hospital emergency room right now at all costs. The first reason on my mind is my horrid credit rating. I just dipped below 600 points after an old medical bill went into collections. It was regarding an emergency room visit during a bad bout of food poisoning. I was being careless when cooking with raw chicken and accidentally ingested bacteria that had me out for four days straight. The high bill makes me frustrated when I remember that I could have avoided the entire situation by paying attention to what I was doing. I called the financial assistance office at the hospital and was able to talk them into taking 40% of the bill instead of 100%, but I’m still worried I won’t be able to pay it off before I try to finance a car next spring. With this in mind, it’s obvious why I’d want to avoid another trip to the ER, regardless of the injury or health concern. The other and arguably bigger reason is the virus. There are more people infected in hospitals and the inside becomes a petri dish for viral transmission. Even if the hospital installs HEPA air purifiers everywhere with UV-C bulbs inside, it’s not enough to assuage my constant concerns. I only have a few N-95 masks left, and I have worn them all at least once. I don’t want to be on the receiving end of viral particles that are being blown around the hospital’s interior by their ventilation system. All of the patients being treated for this disease may be within yards of the emergency room, with several waiting to be seen in the ER.