Oregon Medicaid: Lowering the Barriers to Access

Oregon’s Medicaid program for health insurance has updated the criteria and more people are qualifying for coverage than ever before. With the Oregon Health Plan (OHP) Bridge program that took effect July 1, 2024, an estimated 100,000 Oregon individuals are projected to eventually qualify (OHA, 2024). While these updates grant more access to services and covered benefits, many Medicaid beneficiaries still claim they are unable to utilize their benefits due to difficulty finding a participating provider. With support and reform for mental healthcare on the rise and the future of Medicaid a concern, researchers have been investigating the effectiveness of the federally funded program. As the management of Medicaid services becomes outsourced to privately managed networks, or Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs), it is increasingly more important to confirm that the reported network access adequacy standards are being met. In this paper I will explore recognized barriers to access the researchers have identified that patients and healthcare providers are currently facing and make suggestions of solutions to limit these barriers.