Faced with few accountable care organization (ACO) opportunities, physician practices are likely to further consolidate to stay profitable in the face of changes coming from the Affordable Care Act (ACA). That’s the prediction of John Fanburg, head of the healthcare practice at Brach Eichler in Roseland, N.J., as reported in HealthLeaders Media.
 
Fanburg says ACOs have developed slowly in many areas, leaving physician groups with profit pressures and without partners to help address them. He predicts physician groups will be more likely to merge with one another, to increase negotiating clout or cut costs, than to merge with hospitals.
 
As low as it seems now, experts predict one result of the ACA implementation will be to drive physician reimbursement down further, along with increased regulatory compliance. Healthcare consultant Marc Halley of Halley Consulting Group in Westerville, Ohio, sees “no scenario” where reimbursement increases.