New Poll: Florida Medicaid Families Fear Losing Access to Pediatricians and Believe State Should Be Responsible for Resolving Funding Crisis

PLANTATION, Fla., Aug. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A new poll found that Floridians on Medicaid are widely concerned about recent changes to Medicaid funding for primary pediatric care in Florida, with 3 in 4 believing that patients pay the price when doctors aren't paid enough to cover the cost of care – and most believe Florida's government should be responsible for resolving the issue.

The poll, conducted by Rep Data and commissioned by Pediatric Associates ("PA"), the largest primary care provider in Florida, surveyed Floridians who rely on Medicaid, including parents of children who rely on Medicaid for access to pediatric care.

The poll follows last month's announcement that PA filed a lawsuit against the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), challenging a flawed rate-setting formula that has already drained hundreds of millions of dollars from Florida's pediatric care system. This error has pushed some clinics to leave the Medicaid program and puts at risk the future of everyday pediatric care depended on by more than 2 million Florida children on Medicaid.

The funding crisis is the result of a funding error after AHCA changed how it pays for a specific type of therapy known as behavior analysis services. When this therapy was integrated into the state's Medicaid managed care payment system in 2025, AHCA had to calculate how much of the existing Medicaid funding pool should be allocated to behavior analysis services and how much should remain for general pediatric care. AHCA relied on a flawed methodology that inadvertently transferred money out of the general pediatric care budget. AHCA is aware of its error but has not resolved it.

"This poll confirms what we hear from families every day – that pediatric care is essential for their children and that losing access to that care would put their families in crisis," said Pediatric Associates Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Charlene Wong, MD, MSHP. "Florida families are understandably alarmed by recent changes in funding for pediatric care, and we are proud to stand with them in demanding that AHCA fix this error and restore funding for the care their children need."

Key Poll Findings

• Families value and trust their pediatricians: The overwhelming majority of those surveyed (96%) said a consistent relationship with a pediatrician is important to them, with nearly 3 in 4 families who rely on Medicaid describing relationships built on trust in a pediatrician's medical judgment and on their child's comfort with the pediatrician. Florida's Medicaid funding changes stand to disrupt those relationships if doctors are no longer able to offer services.
• Families fear disruption of care: Nearly all parents on Medicaid (97%) reported that pediatricians leaving the Medicaid program because of insufficient funding would constitute a crisis or a serious problem for their families – and 3 in 4 said that patients like themselves pay the price when doctors aren't paid enough to cover the cost of care.  
• Concern about Medicaid funding changes is widespread: Over 80% of surveyed Floridians on Medicaid express concern about Medicaid funding changes when presented with the fact that the state has shifted Medicaid funding toward specialized therapy and away from primary pediatric care.
• Floridians hold state government responsible: The vast majority (91%) of all those surveyed believe that Florida's government has a responsibility to ensure that Medicaid payments cover care for children so that doctors can continue to see Medicaid patients. Most respondents (59%) reported being less likely to support state officials in the next election who were aware of the problem but took no action to correct it.

The poll surveyed 500 Floridians who rely on Medicaid, including 100 parents, and has a margin of error of +/- 4.4%. Full survey results are available here. To learn more about how this funding crisis arose and what is at stake for Florida if it's not resolved, see here.

About Pediatric Associates

Pediatric Associates is Florida's largest pediatric primary care provider, with more than 95 locations and over 950 dedicated team members delivering compassionate, evidence-based care to children and families across the state. Pediatric Associates provides a personalized, community-centered approach families can trust. For more information, visit PediatricAssociates.com.

About Rep Data

Rep Data provides full-service data collection solutions for researchers, helping expedite data collection for primary quantitative research studies, with a hyper-focus on data quality and consistent execution. Backed by Mountaingate Capital, a growth-focused private equity investment firm, Rep Data is on a mission to be a reliable, repeatable data collection partner for approximately 500 clients, including market research agencies, management consultancies, Fortune 500 corporations, advertising agencies, brand strategy consultancies, universities, communications agencies, public relations firms and more.

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SOURCE Pediatrics Associates