Disparities in access to dermatologic care according to insurance type.

T he 2008 Health Tracking Physician Survey revealed that 53% of all physicians surveyed were willing to accept new Medicaid patients. Another study demonstrated an even lower Medicaid acceptance rate (32%) among US dermatologists. Such low acceptance rates are reflective of considerably lower and delayed reimbursements, increased paperwork and billing requirements, and the high clinical burden of Medicaid patients, all of which have contributed to significant barriers in accessing dermatologic care among this patient population. In 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was signed into law, expanding Medicaid eligibility to include individuals and families with income levels up to 133% of the federal poverty level and expanding the Children’s Health Insurance Program to include an additional 4 million children. We sought to assess the disparities in access to dermatologic care according to patient insurance type and to determine whether a difference in acceptance rates and wait times exists among academic and private dermatologists.