- That doubled enrollment in Reno and its surrounding county from 50,000 to 90,000 people.
- Medicaid enrollment statewide grew from 330,000 people in September 2013 to more than 601,000 in August 2014.
- Now it can take two months to get a doctor’s appointment at a local community health center, or an all-day wait if you just show up.
- In the article, new Meidicaid recipient Carolyn Oatman said: “I love it on Medicaid because now I can go the emergency room when I need to and don’t have to worry about the bill.” Her only income is her husband’s $1,200 monthly disability check.
- To entice more providers, the health law increased Medicaid pay for primary care doctors in 2013 and 2014 to the same levels paid by Medicare.
- In Nevada, that has meant a nearly 30 percent pay hike.
- But federal money is scheduled to run out at year’s end.
- Andrew Pasternak, a family physician who works in a more upscale part of Reno, says he likely will stop seeing new Medicaid patients in January if the payments drop.
- “It’s a huge worry,” he said, noting his reimbursement will go from $75 for a basic office visit to about $44.
- His practice now sees 400 Medicaid enrollees, up from 20 the previous year.
Source: Kaiser Health News and the USA Today.
