07/18/2013    

HEALTHCARE NEWS

Doctors Bail Out On Their Practices

Doctors who own private practices are looking for a way out. Fed up with their rising business expenses and shrinking payouts from insurers, many are selling their practices to hospitals. Experts say the number of physicians unloading their practices to hospitals has risen 30% to 40% in the last five years. Doctors who sell typically become employees of the hospital, as do the people who work for them.

The reasons for the trend vary. Doctors are tired of the hassle of filing insurance claims and collecting payments from patients and want to only focus on medicine again, said Tony Stajduhar, president at Jackson & Coker, a physician recruitment firm. Obamacare has also created more fear of the unknown. Doctors are worried that new regulations will add to their administrative work and require them to pour more money into their businesses, Stajduhar said.

Source: Parija Kavilanz, CNN Money [7/16/13]