May 5, 2022
Providers
  • A new study published in Health Affairs shows that only a small amount of physicians in Medicaid managed care plans care for Medicaid patients. Researchers found that approximately one-third of outpatient primary care and specialist physicians that contracted with Medicaid managed care plans saw fewer than ten Medicaid beneficiaries in a year. Meanwhile, 25 percent of primary care doctors delivered 86 percent of the care and 25 percent of specialists on average provided 75 percent of medical care. Just over 16 percent of physicians listed in Medicaid managed care plan provider network directors in a year qualified as ghost physicians, meaning they saw zero Medicaid beneficiaries over the course of the year in an outpatient setting. (Study here)