Musculoskeletal Urgent Care Centers Restrict Access for Patients with Medicaid Insurance Based on Policy and Location

CONCLUSION: It is clear that musculoskeletal urgent care at these centers is inaccessible to a large segment of the Medicaid-insured population. This inaccessibility seems to be related to state Medicaid physician fee schedules and a center's affiliation with a private orthopaedic practice, indicating how underlying financial pressures influence private practice policies. Ultimately, the refusal of Medicaid by MUCCs may lead to disparities in which patients with private insurance are cared for at MUCCs, while those with Medicaid may experience delays in care. Going forward, there are three main options to tackle this issue: increasing Medicaid physician reimbursement to provide a financial incentive, establishing stricter standards for MUCCs to operate at the state level, or streamlining administration to reduce costs overall. Further research will be necessary to evaluate which policy intervention will be most effective.LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level II, prognostic study.PMID:34114975 | DOI:10.1097/CORR.0000000000001825

Source: Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research - June 11, 2021 Category: Orthopaedics Authors: Laurie C Yousman Walter R Hsiang Grace Jin Michael Najem Alison Mosier-Mills Akshay Khunte Siddharth Jain Howard Forman Daniel H Wiznia Source Type: research