ACA: Big cuts in Medicaid pay rates after Dec. 31

Andy Pasternak, a family doctor in Reno, Nev., has seen more than 100 new Medicaid patients this year after the state expanded the insurance program under the Affordable Care Act. But he won't be taking any new ones after Dec. 31. That's when the law's two-year pay raise for primary care doctors like him who see Medicaid patients expires, resulting in fee reductions of 43 percent on average across the country, according to the nonpartisan Urban Institute.When the temporary pay raise goes away, Pasternak and other Nevada doctors will see their fees drop from $75 on average to less than $50 for routine office visits.