Limited Primary Care Access Drives Medicaid Patients To Emergency Rooms

A recent national study has found that Medicaid beneficiaries are twice as likely to face barriers to primary care than their privately-insured counterparts. According to researchers, this has resulted in an increase in visits to the emergency room among Medicaid beneficiaries in comparison to privately-insured individuals. Overall, 16.3% of Medicaid beneficiaries reported one or more barriers to primary care, compared to 8.9% of people with private insurance. Barriers to care include not being able to reach a doctor by phone, not being able to get a timely appointment, waiting too long in the physician’s office . . .