October 14, 2009

Mayo to drop some patients in Mont., Neb., Ariz.

By Kelley Luckstein

For years, Mayo Clinic officials have complained that Medicare and Medicaid pay less than what it costs to treat patients.

 

Now they're doing something about it.

 

In the past week, the Rochester-based clinic said it will stop caring for 50 Medicaid patients in Montana and Nebraska starting Jan. 1, unless they have a rare disease that can't be treated elsewhere. Also on that date, a handful of Mayo's primary care doctors in Arizona will opt out of Medicare, forcing some 3,200 patients to pay out-of-pocket or find new providers…

 

"Both of these moves are very difficult for us to make," said spokeswoman Shelly Plutowski.

 

"Both point to the fact that we as a country need to change the way we pay for health care. Mayo Clinic and other providers lose money on every Medicare patient we see, and the same goes for Medicaid."

 

Star Tribune by Chen May Yee, 10/13/09

Tags: Finanical, medicaid

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