Patients With No Insurance or Public Insurance Face Difficulty in Finding Doctors

Finding primary care doctors for uninsured people or those with public insurance have trouble finding primary care doctors compared to those who have private health insurance, according to government data. Now this is where questions as to whether the healthcare system is prepared to meet the demands of millions of citizens enrolling under private and public coverage they will receive in Obamacare. Figures from the National Center for Health Statistics' 2012 National Health Interview Survey showed that approximately 2.4% of Americans reported having problems finding a physician, with 2.1% being told that a doctor would not accept them as a new patient and 2.9% saying that a doctor would not accept their form of healthcare coverage as payment. Nearly 90% of primary-care physicians willing to accept new patients are covered under a private insurance plan as with less than 75% of doctors who accept public health coverage, according to the report.

Adults with no insurance and in the age group of 18 and 64 were possibly more likely to experience trouble in finding a primary-care doctor compared to those with private forms of insurance, according to the study. People below 65 years with Medicaid as their only form of health coverage, possibly would find it very difficult to see a doctor and most physicians would refuse to accept their coverage. They would prefer seeing patients with private insurance.

The study also confirmed that adults between the ages of 18 to 64 would encounter the most difficulties in finding doctors. Obamacare is encouraging young people enroll in private health plans through the new exchanges. This will be a very big concern for the Obamacare administrations as when young people buy health insurance covers they need to have an easy access to physicians. When doctors are scarce it will discourage them from enrolling and as a result the health care act will suffer.

References:

Hannah Punitha (IRDA Licence Number: 2710062)

Steven Ross Johnson, December 2013

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Source-Medindia