Perspective               

Are Doctors Taking Less Medicare Patients?

If you are an older or disabled American with Medicare living in an urban area, you may have experienced problems in finding a doctor that accepts patients with Medicare. But are there enough doctors in America that take Medicare patients? According to several different studies, the answer is unclear.

A recent report by USA Today claims that doctors in Colorado, for example, are "frustrated with what they say are low Medicare payments" and are limiting the number of Medicare patients they take, refusing to take new patients, or dropping Medicare patients altogether. One survey showed that only 15 percent of doctors in Colorado are accepting new Medicare patients.

On the other hand, another survey by the Health Care Financing Administration, the agency that runs Medicare indicates that 91 percent of doctors see Medicare patients and that reports of doctors refusing to see Medicare patients are not widespread.

If you have Medicare and are having trouble finding a doctor, go to the Participating Physicians Directory on Medicare's Web site at www.medicare.gov. It will help you locate doctors by specialty and location who accept Medicare's rate as payment in full. The directory lists each doctor's name, address, and specialty. You can also call your State Health Insurance Assistance Program, or SHIP, for advice in finding a doctor. The number is listed in Medicare & You or you can call 1-800-MEDICARE.

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