The Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) released a brief examining the means available for improving small practices that serve many Medicaid patients.  The brief outlines five ways state Medicaid agencies can leverage their resources to reduce disparities in small, under-resourced practices serving Medicaid beneficiaries. 

From the report: Approximately 60 percent of physicians work in practice settings with only one to four providers.  Yet small practices are apt to remain an important piece of the current health care delivery system for years to come, playing a substantial role in caring for low-income and racially and ethnically diverse Medicaid beneficiaries. Unfortunately, these practices include physicians who are likely to retire before they adapt to a new primary care environment. They are also often under-resourced, disenfranchised from the larger health care system, and isolated from other providers and quality improvement initiatives. In the absence of external support, small practices risk falling further behind in chronic care management, health information technology (HIT), and quality of care, compared to their larger, more integrated peers.

Full report: Practice Transformation in Medicaid: Five Levers to Strengthen Small, “High-Volume, High-Opportunity” Practices (PDF | 88 KB)  

Center for Health Care Strategies.  (2010).  Practice transformation in Medicaid: five levers to strengthen small, “high-volume, high-opportunity” Practices.