Medicaid Parity Is Key Topic CMS Official Addresses in Meeting With FPs

 Payment for physicians who care for Medicaid patients has traditionally lagged behind Medicare payment, but federal government policy in the past two years has made strides to change that.

That's according CMS Deputy Administrator Cindy Mann, J.D., who met with AAFP leaders and chapter executives here on Oct. 19 -- in advance of the opening of the 2014 Congress of Delegates -- to discuss a full agenda of issues related to the Medicaid program.

The AAFP extended the invitation to Mann expecting that family physicians would have lots of questions for the woman tasked with developing and implementing national policies that govern a number of federal programs, including Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

In fact, in a wide-ranging discussion, Mann addressed the progress made in implementing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA), the increased Medicaid payment for primary care and ongoing efforts to support physician payment reform.