IPF on Forbes: Newly Insured No Boon to Physician Bottom Line

In this week’s blog post on Forbes.com, I write about the problems the newly insured will have finding healthcare, based on the results of ”Practice Profitability Index ,” a survey and analysis by CareCloud, a vendor of cloud-based electronic health records systems, and by QuantiaMD, an online learning network for physicians.

The survey, conducted among more than 5,000 physicians, reveals that as a whole you are a pessimistic bunch about future profitability. More than a third of you expect profitability to decline over 2013-2014; less than a third think it will remain the same; and less than a quarter have a positive outlook.

The central statistic presented in the Forbes.com article is that 48 percent of you do not have the available capacity to accept new patients, of which a projected 7 million Americans will be acquiring health insurance on Oct. 1 per the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. ”This finding is especially concerning, given the dominance of family practitioners and internists among PPI respondents,” according to the survey results, of which more than 70 percent were from this group. “These physicians serve as the traditional gateways into the healthcare system for patients.”

The survey broke down that lack of capacity even more, concluding:

• There is little variation in results among practices of different sizes. Those unable to take on patients as a result of the ACA range from 44 percent (among those with 2-9 providers) to 54 percent (among those with 26-49 providers). This indicates a fairly united front with respect to ACA patient flow

• Among psychiatrists, a full 59 percent say they will not be able to take on additional patients. Pediatricians and OB/GYNs, however, are much more likely to accommodate new patients – 61 percent say they can do so

• In high-population states, California physicians are most likely to say that they do not have the resources to take on ACA patients (55 percent). By contrast, their peers in Massachusetts are more likely to be accommodating (44 percent cannot, but 56 percent can).

Most of you perceive that you are at the mercy of Medicare, Medicaid, and insurers. When asked what steps you can take to improve your bottom lines, the survey found:

• Billing and collection processes (50 percent)
• Technology (31 percent)
• Staffing (31 percent)
• New cash-based services (19 percent)
• Joining an accountable care organization (16 percent)
• Facilities (15 percent)

Of those only one, “joining an accountable care organization,” is the result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

Click here to read the piece on insidePatientFinance’s Forbes platform.

Click here to download the entire ”Practice Profitability Index” survey results.