Not all of your peers are planning to take the drastic steps in response to the Medicare pay cut that were suggested by a recent survey. The survey of 2,860 practices, conducted by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA), found that a stunning 78% said they would alter their policy on Medicare patients if the pay cut goes through. The breakdown was more measured, with 49.5% saying they won't accept new Medicare patients and 27.5% saying they'll stop treating Medicare patients entirely.
But another survey of 1,261, administered in September by Physicians Practice, found the trend nearly reversed. In their survey, 59.2% of practices said they'll continue accepting new Medicare patients "for the foreseeable future."
This survey asked different questions, but the results overall indicate a clearly different trendline: 17.4% of respondents said they no longer accept Medicare, period, while 12.1% said they may stop taking Medicare patients "in the next few years." Only 4.2% said they have currently stopped accepting new Medicare patients.
Next week: Stay tuned for a two-part series on how to identify money-losing Medicare services and how you can staunch the bleeding, which will debut in the next issue of Part B News!