Physicians Moving towards Cash-Only

New Sermo Survey Indicates Physicians Moving towards Cash-Only Practices

Cambridge, Mass. November 5, 2009 — Sermo (https://www.sermo.com), the nation’s largest online physician community, today announced the results of a new survey, which indicates that physicians are moving towards cash-only practices as they cope with the business realities of an uncertain healthcare environment. The new survey comes on the heels of newly proposed healthcare reform legislation and an expected 21% cut in physician Medicare payments in 2010.

According to a Sermo survey conducted of 1,000 US physicians on Sermo between October 30 and November 4th:

• 61% have accelerated dropping 3rd party payors given the 21% proposed cut in physician payments.
• 91% of physicians state they could discount their services by up to 40% if they didn’t have to pursue reimbursement from third-party payors.

Physicians are more strained than ever before to stay in business and are searching for new models to help them succeed. In fact, according to a recent report from the Health Economics Institute, physicians’ offices spend between $23 and $32 billion dollars a year in administrative overhead trying to get paid by insurance companies.

Due to the increased burden of administrative overhead and cuts in payments for services, many physicians are weighing the benefits of cash-only practices — meaning they would stop accepting any form of insurance and leave patients to seek reimbursement from insurance companies themselves. When asked to select what their goals would be for improving patient care if they moved to this model:

• 80% selected “lower influences of 3rd parties on treatment plans”
• 75% selected “more time with patients”
• 75% selected “encourage patients to have a greater vested interest in their own care”
• 60% selected “provide services to patients that have no insurance or high-deductable HSA’s”
• 60% selected “I could offer patients more flexible payment terms and discounts”

“Our data continues to support the fact that physicians are becoming more and more concerned about the business realities now facing them,” said Dr. Daniel Palestrant, CEO and founder of Sermo.  “Because of this, we’re seeing a powerful trend in the Sermo community where physicians are turning toward new business models that can help improve their financial underpinnings and re-establish the centrality of the doctor-patient relationship.”

To support physicians as they revaluate their business strategies, Sermo today also launched the Sermo Practice Management Exchange™(PME).  PME is a new area within the Sermo community where physicians can share strategies and insights about how to run a successful practice while earning CME credits. To learn more, see press release dated 11/5/09 titled ‘Sermo Launches the Practice Management Exchange™ to Support the New Physician Practice in a Changing Healthcare World.’

About Sermo
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photo credit: skpy