Experiences and Attitudes of Primary Care Practitioners After the ACA

1. 20%
87%
49%
13%
87%
48%
20%
76%
44%
79%
13%
51%
87%
12%
52%
71%
13%
41%
Favorable Unfavorable
Like Public Overall, Primary Care Providers’ Opinions On ACA
Are Split, with Sharp Partisan Divisions
Overall, what is your opinion of the health care law that was passed in 2010, also known as the Affordable Care Act
(ACA) or Obamacare?
Total
Primary Care Physicians
NOTE: Don’t know/Refused responses not shown.
SOURCE: Kaiser Family Foundation Health Tracking Poll (conducted August 6-11, 2015), The Kaiser Family Foundation/Commonwealth Fund 2015 National
Survey of Primary Care Providers (conducted January 5 – March 30, 2015)
General Population
Democrats
Republicans
Total
Democrats
Republicans
Total
Democrats
Republicans
Primary Care Nurse Practitioners/Physician Assistants

2. About Six In Ten Primary Care Clinicians Report Seeing
More Medicaid or Newly Insured Patients Since January 2014
44
31
48
59
54
36
54
64
0
20
40
60
80
100
Total number of patients Medicaid patients Newly insured patients Medicaid or newly insured
patients
Primary Care Physicians Primary Care Nurse Practitioners and Physician Assistants
Percent of providers reporting increases in the following types of patients since January 2014:
SOURCE: The Kaiser Family Foundation/Commonwealth Fund 2015 National Survey of Primary Care Providers (conducted January 5 – March 30, 2015)

3. 20%
18%
59%
63%
20%
19%
Gotten worse Stayed about the same Improved
Percent who say since January 2014, their ability to provide high quality care to all patients has…
Primary Care Physicians
Primary Care Nurse
Practitioners/Physician
Assistants
Most Providers Report No Change In Their Ability To Provide
Quality Care
SOURCE: The Kaiser Family Foundation/Commonwealth Fund 2015 National Survey of Primary Care Providers (conducted January 5 – March 30, 2015)

4. 50%
92%
63%
43%
66%
21%
6%
22%
23%
13%
Total Community
Health Clinic
Hospital-owned Private practice Total Primary
Care NPs/PAs
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Accepts Medicaid but not currently taking new Medicaid patients
Currently accepting new Medicaid patients
SOURCE: The Kaiser Family Foundation/Commonwealth Fund 2015 National Survey of Primary Care Providers (conducted January 5 – March 30, 2015)
Primary Care Physicians
by Practice Type
Half Of Physicians And Two-Thirds Of Nurse Practitioners And
Physician Assistants Currently Accept New Medicaid Patients

5. 36%
25%
35%
44%
24%
31%
50%
44%
17%
12%
23%
18%
10%
21%
48%
9%
6%
10%
16%
14%
Negative impact No impact Positive impact Not sure
AMONG PRIMARY CARE PHYSICIANS: Percent who say the ACA has had a positive, negative, or no impact on each of the
following:
Your medical practice overall
The ability of your practice
to meet patient demand
The quality of care your
patients receive
Access to health care and
insurance in the country
overall
The cost of health care for
your patients
SOURCE: The Kaiser Family Foundation/Commonwealth Fund 2015 National Survey of Primary Care Providers (conducted January 5 – March 30, 2015)
Physicians’ Views of the Impact of Health Reform Are More
Negative On Cost of Care And More Positive On Access