Counties Worried About Doctor Count Ahead of Medi-Cal Growth
County officials are concerned by a shortage of physicians in the state as California prepares for a Medi-Cal expansion under the federal health reform law, the Ventura County Star reports.
Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program (Westphal, Ventura County Star, 7/14).
Background
Under the reform law, states have the option of expanding Medicaid coverage to individuals with incomes of up to 133% of the poverty level. The lawâs Medicaid expansion provision also will expand coverage to low-income adults who have no children (California Healthline, 7/6).
Following the U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholding the reform law, California officials said the state would move forward with implementing its provisions. Forty-seven California counties are participating in the "Bridge to Reform" program, which aims to implement the Medicaid expansion ahead of schedule (California Healthline, 6/29).
Inland communities -- which are facing a shortage of primary care physicians -- will have more residents receiving Medi-Cal coverage under the expansion than wealthier coastal communities.
The state has an uneven distribution of physicians. For example, Riverside and San Bernardino counties have only one medical school and struggle to attract and retain physicians, while some counties in the northern part of the state have an abundance of doctors.
Meanwhile, an article by the California HealthCare Foundation's Center for Health Reporting reports that nearly half of primary care physicians in the state are not willing to see new Medi-Cal beneficiaries because they say Medi-Cal reimbursement is too low. The Center is supported by a grant from CHCF, which publishes California Healthline (California Healthline, 7/6).
California also has a large number of physicians who are nearing retirement age, which could affect the number of physicians who treat Medi-Cal beneficiaries.
Concerns
Mary Carr, executive director of the Ventura County Medical Association, said that mandates in the reform law and resulting health care trends -- such as accountable care organizations, electronic health records and lower physician reimbursement -- could result in fewer physicians available to treat newly insured patients.
She said the changes "may cause physicians to choose early retirement."
Seeking Solutions
Lee Kemper -- executive director of the County Medical Services Program, a consortium of 34 rural counties implementing the Medi-Cal expansion -- said Medi-Cal reimbursement rates must be increased in rural areas to attract more doctors.
In addition, Senate Health Committee Chair Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina) plans to draft legislation that would expand scope-of-practice definitions for certain health care providers -- such as nurse practitioners and physician assistants -- to help bolster the stateâs health care workforce.
In addition, Hernandez said he will try to increase the number of medical students in the state and push for medical residency programs in underserved areas.
This article was produced by the CHCF's Center for Health Reporting. CHCF is the publisher of California Healthline (Ventura County Star, 7/14).
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