Finding a doctor who accepts Medicaid

Reimbursement, if they even pay at all, is not enough to cover overhead, let alone pay me.

If my practice were substantially Medicaid, I’d go bankrupt.

There are clinics taking Medicaid in my area. They have various arrangements that allow them greater payment for Medicaid, sometimes even on a cost-plus basis. Or they get various government and private grants.

If they have ways of extracting higher payment, as far as I’m concerned, let them.

The story described, of the person saying she went to a doc’s office and then was told to leave, I see that sort of thing from time to time. The person is likely in some sort of Medicaid managed care plan. They are supposed to see certain doctors on-panel. I’m sure the patient said whatever the practice needed to hear to get scheduled. When paperwork was presented, though, that practice was non-network for them. We get that as well.

They say they’re not Medicaid when they really are, and pay cash. That’s fine, and I’d have sympathy for their plight. Problem is, Medicaid has a “look-back” of about six months in my state. What happens is they pay cash, then a few months later, they say “Oh, by the way, I have Medicaid”. They ask for a refund, and I’m back in the Medicaid mess.

For that reason, people who say they’re cash-pay, I check Medicaid eligibility anyway. Every few weeks, I find someone who has misrepresented his/her Medicaid status.

Sad but true, that even cash is not as good as cash anymore.
“The first question isn’t, ‘How can we help you?’ ” she said, “but, ‘What type of insurance do you have?’ ”
Classic tear grabber line. But in reality there’s one thing medicine cannot do that your local mechanic can (and does); put a lien on your car and impound it until you pay. No pay and your car gets sold. In health care you cannot do that, so all hostage taking as it were must occur before services are rendered.

How arrogant that doctors don’t want to go bankrupt.

Actually, if “rich folks” means rich elderly, it doesn’t help much, as Medicare is Medicare, whether a retired millionaire or a retired pauper. Pay is the same.

If the goal is dollars, the best patient demographic is young employed families.

girlvet,

Are you a vet? Do you treat pets for free? Maybe health care for pets should be an absolute right so we can introduce government redulated, peticaid.

“Society has been getting the short end of the stick on this deal and it is about time people wake up and demand a level of responsibility from the providers commensurate with their privilege.”

Pretty words, but meaningless.

There is no “privilege” in medicine. If anything, it is the public that is privileged to have doctors to look after them. With 8 years in school, hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt to pay off, and another 3-6 years in residency working 80 hours a week for less than $50K a year?

Where is the privilege in that?

If society paid for doctors-to-be to attend school, and then paid them a reasonable wage for their work while a resident, then society would should have a say in how they’re treated as a collective.

Until that time, “society” can pay up or shut up. Being homo sapiens isn’t a guarantee of free health care, as much as the bleeding heart liberals in this country would like this.

You are not special. You are not a beautiful and unique snowflake.

Happy thoughts and pretty words don’t pay the electric bill or put food on the table. And it clearly is a matter not even being able to pay the bills, as you can read from the comments above.

If I was a doctor, or had aspirations of being one, I certainly wouldn’t accept medicare or medicaid, until the reimbursement rate problem is fixed. Don’t like it? Complain to your representatives.

“supply side restrictions on gas stations”

We do – it’s called zoning.

Social contract? Doesn’t the scope of the disagreement between the thousands of interested parties suggest that there is no social contract?
Social contract is just another means that people who want things free try to confiscate the property or work of others.

From the article:

“You also have to factor in supply and demand,” said Hales. The general supply of doctors is dwindling as more reach retirement age and fewer graduate from medical school. Meanwhile, aging baby boomers feed a growing demand for care.
In leaner times, “a doctor might not care so much about reimbursement so long as somebody is in the chair,” said Hales. But today, “we really rely on the good naturedness of our doctors,” he said. “

Conclusion: How do you tell when a Medicaid director is lying….when he opens his mouth.

New medical schools comming? Share this information with us.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_medical_schools_in_the_United_States
The number of medical schools, currently 126, hasn’t meaningfully changed since I was applying in 1985.

…ask yourself why did you go into medicine? As far as “keeping the doors open”, guess what MDs? The days of private practice are gone. The days of mass practice are here. Face reality…why is it that doctors want to keep the old ways where they were treated like self important Gods? Guess what ladies and gentlemen, those days are gone and they ain’t comin/ back…

Oregon, as one example, increased its class size, and added a branch campus in Eugene.

The osteopathic schools are expanding like crazy. New schools and branches of established schools.

Google “Medical School Expansion” or a similar phrase, and you’ll see the plans in place all over the country.