Comments on: Medicaid Recipients More Likely To Be Diagnosed With Advanced Cancer

By: Wenchypoo

Wenchypoo — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 17:25:46 +0000

I’m thinking it’s probably because Medicare/Medicaid only covers the bare minimums, and reimbursement rates for certain diagnostics are very low to zero. There’s also a culture problem in some communities with trusting doctors and modern medicine, and it’s not like cancer has only one set of blatantly-obvious symptoms. By the time some people finally break down and go see a doctor, it’s too late for the Medicare/Medicaid system to help them effectively.

By: Jay

Jay — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 08:22:20 +0000

That is a great point K.K. — I wish I would have said it like that!

By: K.K.

K.K. — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 17:17:08 +0000

I’m sure that education and social status play a part in the delayed diagnosis of Medicaid patients, but even more, I believe the clinic system in most cities is at fault. Medicaid is often not accepted in private physician offices because of low reimbursement, so Medicaid patients are shunted off to clinic settings. Since most clinics don’t take appointments (and even those that do take appointments are overbooked and understaffed), going to the doctor means spending an entire day waiting to be seen. For Medicaid recipients with jobs, it means taking a day off from work, usually unpaid. So despite the fact that they “have health insurance,” most Medicaid recipients can’t actually afford to see a doctor until they are very sick.