Physicians often cite low Medicaid reimbursement rates as the primary reason for not accepting new Medicaid patients. However, research connecting Medicaid payment rates to access remains limited.
To further investigate this relationship, MACPAC partnered with Mathematica to conduct a literature review and host a roundtable with experts from federal agencies and academia. The discussion focused on known challenges related to Medicaid beneficiaries; access to physicians, such as variations across specialties, practice types, and states, as well as potential avenues for future research.
This issue brief begins with an overview of physician services and payment within Medicaid, followed by a review of recent federal policy and regulatory changes. It then summarizes the findings from the literature review and roundtable discussion, concluding with suggestions for future research.
