A new study to be conducted by a Mississippi State University medical sociologist may have adverse effects on the way the state’s Medicaid program operates.
Jeralyn Cossman, assistant professor in social work, is holding a study to reveal if Medicaid patients in Mississippi have a similar level of access to health care as other people in Mississippi.
According to Cossman, doctors in Mississippi voluntarily choose to take Medicaid patients, which may force patients to travel great distances in order to obtain health care if doctors within their area are not accepting Medicaid patients.
However, federal law mandates that Medicaid patients must have the same level of health care access as the general population. Cossman’s study will provide information on whether this same level of access is being provided in Mississippi.
“We proposed to look at how far people on Medicaid have to drive to see a doctor and compare that to how far the general population would have to drive to see a doctor,” Cossman said. “We will have information on each Medicaid claim, each Medicaid patient and each Medicaid doctor. This data can then be used to see how far Medicaid patients travel for health care.”
“We have also worked with the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure to collect data on physicians who are practicing in the state. We can use this information to determine how much travel is involved for everyone in Mississippi,” Cossman said.
In addition, the study will look at the effects created from reducing the reimbursements two years ago for physicians that have treated Medicaid patients. The last phase of the project will cover whether Medicaid patients’ access to care declined since the government reduced the amount paid for each doctor to see a Medicaid patient.
The study’s results will be used by Medicaid to better understand where its population might be being underserved, Cossman said. Medicaid will receive a final report from the project and it will determine how it uses that information. The results will also be used to write journal articles used to develop a better understanding of access to care for Medicaid patients and how, or if, reimbursement rates affect it.
Mississippi Health Policy Research Center, a social science research center unit, will conduct the study. Arthur Cosby, director of Social Science Research, will assist Cossman in analyzing data from the state Medicaid program and Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure.
Cosby said Mississippi’s Medicaid program includes about 20 to 25 percent of the state’s population, and approximately $2 billion to $3 billion is spent every year on the program.
“If Medicaid is structured in a way that health providers either cannot or will not provide adequate medical service, it could potentially impact many that rely on the system,” Cosby said.
“Through her study, Dr. Cossman is trying to examine the problem areas of Medicaid to find what kinds of services may be limited,” Cosby said. “It is important to understand how any potential problems may affect the large number of Medicaid clients.”
Ellen Jones, associate director for the Mississippi Health Policy Research Center said that upon Cossman’s research completion, the results can then be examined and used for future policy making.
“Like other projects of the Mississippi Health Policy Research Center, results of Dr. Cossman’s work will be disseminated to decision makers, health care providers, and health planners,” Jones said. “In this way, the center provides data about the most critical health policy issues that affect Mississippi. Access to health care for all Mississippians is among the most pressing issues we face.”
To obtain the grant, Cossman submitted the research proposal last spring to the Southern Rural Access Program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Two people who studied access to care for Medicaid patients reviewed the grant. Following the review, a one-year $53,000 grant was awarded.
The one-year research award is provided through the 21st Century Challenge Fund, based in New Jersey, and its Southern Rural Access Program which explores medical access for Medicaid patients. The program’s long-term goals focus on improving access to health care in several states, including Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, South Carolina, East Texas, and West Virginia.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health care, awarding grants for programs centering on problems including the provision of basic health care at a reasonable cost; improving care and support for people with chronic health conditions; promoting healthy communities and lifestyles, and reducing personal, social and economic harm caused by substance abuse.