The precariousness of the U.S. health care system has been laid bare by the incipient spread of the coronavirus, say the Commonwealth Fund’s Sara Collins and David Blumenthal, M.D., in this new Los Angeles Times op-ed (paywall). With millions of Americans unable to afford to see a doctor if they become ill with COVID-19, how are we going to mount a strong effort to slow the disease’s spread?

Collins and Blumenthal suggest a public awareness campaign to make sure people know they should seek care if they need it, an initiative that would be far more effective if those needing treatment could be confident they wouldn’t be saddled with ruinous medical bills. They also suggest moving quickly to make Medicaid — which has been deployed in the past to deal with broad-scale public health crises — available to more people.

Insurance markets and health systems work best when everyone is included, the authors note. The coronavirus, whether it becomes a full-blown pandemic or not, demonstrates that the health system cannot leave anyone out.