To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate
Congress: Reinstate Medicaid Pay Parity
Every child deserves access to quality health care; however, on January 1st, 2015, a vital piece of the Affordable Care Act expired leading to a cut in physician Medicaid reimbursement of 20 to 70%. This means more sick kids are being turned away at doctors’ offices across the country and not getting the care they need. This isn't right! I'm standing with Kid's Count and the American Academy of Pediatrics: reinstate Medicaid pay parity with back payment to January 1st so kids can get the care they deserve.
Why is this important?
In 2006, I started Kid's Count Pediatrics in Elkin, North Carolina. Because the patients we care for are the children of struggling families and chronically ill children, 85% of our practice is Medicaid compared to the National average of 22% for primary care providers. Because we do not turn away kids with Medicaid as their primary insurance, our practice makes 40-50% less than a traditional practice. The poor reimbursement rates plus the recent 20% pay cut (causing us to lose $3,000 a week in revenue since January 1st) leave us struggling to keep our doors open. If we close, where will these kids go? Kids don't choose their insurance, and all children deserve the same access to life saving treatments. Practices like Kid's Count Pediatrics offer a service to the community, but, by accepting government funded health insurance, we struggle to keep our doors open. Since the expiration of Medicaid Pay Parity on January 1st of 2015, our practice has so far lost $32,000. Please join us and the American Academy of Pediatrics in asking our government to reinstate Medicaid pay parity with back payment to January 1st so we can keep taking care of our kids.