Doctors Still Not Seeing Temporary Medicaid Pay Boost

Bureaucratic delays give physicians a glimpse of the future

WASHINGTON—Primary care providers haven't been receiving a boost in Medicaid reimbursements in 2013 as promised by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), doctor groups and Medicaid plans said.

Instead, states are still submitting necessary amendments to Medicaid plans to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to allow the agency to pay Medicaid primary care providers at the higher Medicare rates.

The ACA provision sought to incentivize primary care physicians to see Medicaid patients, while another provision of the law was aimed at adding more than 30 million new beneficiaries to the rolls by increasing eligibility to include those with incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level.

States have until March 31 to file paperwork with CMS on their plans, and the agency has 90 days to respond to it.