Small change in Medicare participation among FPs

The AAFP tracks Medicare participation among its members. Data from the AAFP's 2008 Practice Profile Survey found that 27 percent of family physicians are not accepting new Medicare patients, although the vast majority, 92 percent, continue to serve as Medicare participating physicians. In the past four years, the percentage of family physicians accepting new Medicare patients has decreased from 80 percent to 73 percent. However, the percentage who continue as participating physicians in the program hasn't changed significantly, despite growing criticism of the fee schedule among primary care physicians.

Medicare participation is higher among rural physicians than others by both measures, especially in acceptance of new Medicare patients: Eighty-three percent of rural physicians reported accepting new Medicare patients compared with 70 percent of other physicians. Family physicians in rural communities may feel more pressure to continue seeing Medicare patients. As Dr. Diane Fabricius of Oak Ridge, Tenn., wrote in FPM earlier this year, "I am part of the infrastructure of our small medical community, and I am not sure that it will hold if I resign from Medicare completely."

Posted at 03:23PM Nov 12, 2008 by Leigh Ann Backer  |  Comments[0]