Pundits (myself included) are detecting a sea change on the Hill – the health plans’ power meter is just barely registering while physicians are pegging the needle. If you’re wondering why physicians were so adamantly opposed to the Medicare reimbursement cut, it is because their compensation is barely keeping up with inflation.
Recall that the GOP was going to cut their Medicare reimbursement by 10.6% (while also reducing Medicaid and other Medicare-linked compensation). And this after physicians had gone several years with their income not even keeping pace with inflation.
According to the latest data from 2007, primary care docs enjoyed a 3.35% increase in compensation after inflation (6.3% before accounting for the 2.85% CPI uptick last year). This rather modest increase is way better than their specialist colleagues saw – inflation-wise, specialists broke even. However, specialists’ median income was almost a third of a million bucks, while specialists were just over $182k, so the primary care docs have a long way to go to catch up.
And some of them have a really really long way – median general practice income was $119k, whlle Family practice docs made $129k.
Not bad money, but not exactly huge bucks either. The other part of the equation has to do with job satisfaction – if you love your job, you’re likely to be less concerned with how much you make. But if you don’t love your job, and some damn President/Congressperson is threatening to cut your already low income, while paying big health plans billions more than they should…
Job satisfaction amongst primary care docs is declining. 60% of PCPs (primary care practitioners) would not choose primary care if they got a do-over. 39% would pick surgery or diagnostics, and over one-fifth would not choose medicine.
Looking at changes from 2006 to 2007, the percentage of docs who counted themselves as ‘very satisfied’ declined from 24% to 18%, while those who were ‘very dissatisfied’ went up from 9.4% to 13.2%.
So what do these newly-empowered, angry docs want?
36% want a Canadian-style single payer system.
66% agreed that the “US should move to a market driven system that reduces the role of third party payers.”
(note these were separate questions and therefore don’t add up to 100%)
Yes, working with physicians has heretofore required cat-wrangling skills. And their egos require outdoor meetings as no hall is big enough. And all want more for their specialty and their patients are sicker than average. And they are all better than average.
And they’ve recently found out what they can accomplish when they stop acting like Augustus Gloop and work together.
Thanks to FierceHealthcare for the triggering tip.
Jul
17
It is not only PCP’s that have been hurt by CMS. ALL part B providers have had to endure declining reimbursement rates.
Looking to the government to provide a solution through price controls is not the answer. Physicians who recognize that the “cottage-style” business model has become outdated and too costly and who work within larger practice models have increased satisfaction.