The top three specific challenges, which were also the top challenges in the 2008 survey, were as follows:
- Dealing with operating costs that are rising more rapidly than revenues;
- Maintaining physician compensation levels in an environment of declining reimbursement; and
- Selecting and implementing a new EHR.
Collecting from self-pay patients and those with high-deductible health plans and health savings accounts was determined to be the fourth-largest challenge. Managing finances in the face of uncertain Medicare reimbursement rates rounded out the top five, and recruiting physicians ranked sixth.
MGMA also asked study participants how the recession is affecting their medical groups and how they are responding. Ranked by average score, the participants indicated the most probable effects of the recession on their practices are:
- An increase in uninsured patients;
- Improved billing and collections and/or denial management process;
- Decreased revenues;
- Postponed capital expenditures;
- Operating budget cuts; and
- Staff hiring freezes.
Many respondents said they were experiencing the effects of the recession on their practices:
- 36.6 percent said they have postponed capital expenditures;
- 34.7 percent are seeing a rise in uninsured patients;
- 34.5 percent have implemented a staff hiring freeze;
- 33.9 percent have cut operating budgets;
- 33.3 percent have improved billing and collections processes; and
- 33.1 percent have witnessed a decrease in revenue.
However, 80 percent said there was a zero probability their practice would close because of the poor economy.
Read the MGMA release on the medical practice challenge study.
