| If you are receiving Medicare and/or Medicaid, it | | | | Sadly, using emergency rooms for |
| can often be difficult to find a doctor, be it a | | | | non-emergency health care is unbelievably |
| general practitioner or specialist, who will accept | | | | expensive, making the lower reimbursement |
| your insurance. Unfortunately the payment | | | | Medicare/Medicaid rates not financially wise in the |
| schedules set up by the government have | | | | long run. |
| resulted in many doctors opting out of the | | | | So, how do you find a doctor that will take new |
| system because they simply cannot afford the | | | | Medicare/Medicaid patients? |
| substantially lower payments for Medicaid | | | | Well, first of all, do not expect to find a doctor or, |
| Medicare services as well as afford to pay for the | | | | should you find one or a clinic taking Medicare |
| substantially greater paperwork involved in taking | | | | Medicaid patients, do not plan on getting an |
| such patients. | | | | appointment quickly. Sadly, that will not happen |
| Sadly, government has had a tendency to reduce | | | | very often. Indeed, if you need quick care, the |
| reimbursement payments, not increase them, and | | | | emergency room is likely to be your only |
| do not seem to be interested in covering the | | | | recourse. |
| actual cost of providing services. | | | | To track down Medicare/Medicaid providers, you |
| Not only that, but private insurers are not longer | | | | can contact your local health department or social |
| willing to "subsidize" public patients by paying higher | | | | service agencies to find out more information and |
| rates, so doctors cannot shift the ever-increasing | | | | there are a number of Medicare and Medicaid |
| costs to them. | | | | doctor directories online. While they cannot |
| As a result, at a time when more and more | | | | guarantee you an appointment, they do have |
| doctors are opting out of the system, those | | | | access to information about current providers. |
| doctors who still take Medicare and Medicaid | | | | You can also go to the Medicare website at |
| patients generally limit the number they will serve, | | | | Medicare.gov or call them at 800-633-4227 (TTY |
| so finding a doctor who will take your Medicare or | | | | 877-486-2048) to find Medicare providers in your |
| Medicaid insurance is not as easy as simply | | | | area, although there is no guarantee they will be |
| opening the phone book and making a phone call. | | | | accepting new patients. It is worth a try, though. |
| Indeed, it probably will take some real time and | | | | Also, managed care is probably a better bet than |
| effort on your part. | | | | private practice. HMOs organized by private |
| There is not, and never has been, any | | | | insurers have a practical interest in having HMO |
| requirement that doctors treat patients insured | | | | doctors taking government-insured patients, while |
| by Medicare or Medicaid. Therefore, people with | | | | Prepaid Health Plans (PHPs) are generally run by |
| Medicare or Medicaid are increasingly turning to | | | | hospitals or medical schools, and often only accept |
| federally funded clinics, or even to emergency | | | | Medicaid patients. |
| rooms that cannot, by law, turn them away. | | | | |