Stiff-arming Medicaid Patients

Democrat John Foust, who hopes to become the next Representative of Virginia’s 10th congressional district, has taken Republican nominee Barbara Comstock to task for her opposition to Medicaid expansion. That’s all fine and good in a campaign. Except the Foust family has a bit of a Medicaid problem that would seem to completely undercut his line of attack. It turns out his wife’s medical practice does not accept Medicaid:

Dr. Marilyn C. Jerome practices obstetrics and gynecology at Foxhall OB/GYN Associates in Spring Valley, an upper northwest suburb of Washington, D.C. Jerome has practiced there since 1982. Foxhall is also where Attorney General Eric Holder’s wife Dr. Sharon D. Malone practices.

No physician or staff at Foxhall is listed as a Medicaid provider on the D.C. Department of Health Care Finance’s database. A phone call to the office confirmed that the practice does not accept Medicaid.

There are probably very good reasons why Dr. Jerome and her colleagues don’t take Medicaid patients — including low pay, bureaucratic hurdles and reimbursement delays.

In other words, it’s about money. I’ve no problem with that. But as of now, the Foust campaign does.