Alabama Medicaid Agency will end increased payments to participating physicians Aug. 1 as a result of decreased state funding, the Montgomery Advertiser reported.
The elimination of the primary care bump — created under the Affordable Care Act and continued by states to pay Medicaid-accepting physicians higher Medicare rates — could lead to physician layoffs and hinder Medicaid recipients' access to care. The privately insured could also face challenges from layoffs, state medical associations said.
With the primary care bump elimination, participating physicians who received $101 from Medicaid for 25-minute office visits will receive $67. Reimbursements for 70-minute hospital visits will decrease from $194 to $113, according to the Montgomery Advertiser.
Twenty-two percent of Alabama's population receives Medicaid coverage, according to the report. Pediatricians accepting Medicaid recipients could be hit hard, as more than half of the state's 1 million Medicaid recipients are children.
The primary care bump elimination will save the agency about $14.7 million, the Montgomery Advertiser reported.
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