Here ’s how a glucometer turned this doctor against Medicaid for all

In a recent Vox interview, Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) announced his plans to allow individuals without insurance to buy Medicaid coverage. As a family doctor caring for patients on Medicaid in Senator Schatz’s home state, I cannot support such a plan. Medicare continues to be run by the federal government. In contrast, Medicaid programs are run by states. The trend in recent decades is for states to contract out Medicaid to private insurance corporations. Before 1994, Hawaii’s Medicaid was administered by HMSA, Hawaii’s Blue Cross/Blue Shield. During the Clinton era, the buzzword was “managed competition” among insurance corporations, which would compete on price. In 1994, the State of Hawaii devolved to managed-care Medicaid and started contracting with multiple corporations. In 2009, managed-care Medicaid was extended to the aged, blind and disabled. Medicaid reimburses at lower rates than Medicare or private insurance, a problem Senator Schatz proposes to fix. However, low reimbursement is just one reason why private and group practices accept few Medicaid patients. Another reason is the administrative barriers put up by insurance companies as well as the headache of dealing with multiple companies. Thus, Medicaid patients must choose from restricted networks of providers. Many are seen by safety net providers such as federally qualified health centers or training clinics. Continue reading ... Your patients are rating you online: How to respond. Manage your...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Policy Diabetes Public Health & Washington Watch Source Type: blogs