IMPACT ON MEDICAIDNational health care reform will expand eligibility for Medicaid, the state-federal health program for the poor and disabled, to 133 percent of the federal poverty level. Nationally, an estimated 16 million people will be added to the public Medicaid program through an expansion of eligibility levels, including 250,000 in Tennessee’s Medicaid program, TennCare. In Georgia, 673,968 could qualify for Medicaid statewide, according to one state estimate.
National health reform measures likely will precipitate fundamental changes in how medical care is delivered to patients, as providers cope with a new health care landscape, local health care leaders and doctors say.
An influx of 30 million more insured people into the health care system must be met with greater efficiency, said Jim Hobson, president and CEO of Memorial Hospital.
“It will require hospitals to be more agile,” he said.
Partnerships between physicians and hospitals, and partnerships between hospitals, will foster greater coordination of care and should result in fewer medical errors and repeated tests, Mr. Hobson said.