Medicaid managed care programs grow; so do issues

After Tonya Bauserman slipped in a grocery store and hurt her right knee last July, an emergency room doctor prescribed painkillers and told her to see an orthopedic surgeon.

But Bauserman, 27, who's insured by a Medicaid managed health care plan called HealthCare USA, says she had trouble finding an orthopedist in her plan who would see her. Finally, she drove 2½ hours to Columbia from her home in a northwestern suburb here to see a physician, who fitted her for a brace and recommended physical therapy. HealthCare USA later said it wouldn't pay for the brace.