Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1477870
41 ASC 'System collapse' looming with unchecked physician pay cuts, surgeon says By Patsy Newitt M any physicians are shocked and confused by Medicare's physician fee schedule proposed rule for 2023, which would reduce the conversion factor by 4.42 percent. Cory Calendine, MD, an orthopedic surgeon at the Bone and Joint Institute of Tennessee in Franklin, joined Becker's to discuss his concerns with increased cuts to physician pay. Editor's note: ese responses were edited lightly for clarity and length. Question: If CMS follows through with its proposed 4.42 percent physician pay cut, how will physicians & patients be affected? Dr. Cory Calendine: Physicians, those standing closest to the patient and essential for patient care, are facing incredible inflationary pressure in the maintenance of their practices and offices. ey have increasing staff and supply costs which are making continued viability more difficult. Larger economic factors are contributing to this inflationary pressure, but the COVID-19 effect is undeniable. To be facing these rising costs and then to have the largest governmental payer suggest a reduction in reimbursement is seemingly tone deaf to the physician ecosystem and its current difficulties. Without physicians, we will not have coordinated patient care. Patients will suffer. Q: How will the healthcare industry shift if physician payments continue to decline? CC: e outcome of this continued declining reimbursement combined with rising costs will be physicians seeking shelter from the financial storm, meaning additional physician employment by larger health systems, and/or, worse, a reduction in the physician workforce overtime. Presumably a portion of the care can be provided by advanced practitioners; however, there will likely be declining quality and availability of physician services. e physician spend represents a small portion of the total Medicare spend, making this approach seem shortsighted — if not entirely inappropriate. is path is unsustainable and will lead to system collapse if unchecked. n 10 specialties with the highest pay jumps By Patsy Newitt R adiology saw the highest pay jump among physician specialties in the last year, according to Merritt Hawkins and AMN Healthcare's 2022 "Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives." The report is based on 2,695 physician and advanced practitioner search engagements conducted from April 1, 2021, to March 31. The 10 specialties with the highest increases in pay from the 2020-21 pay cycle to 2021-22: Radiology 12 percent OB-GYN 9 percent Anesthesiology 8 percent Noninvasive cardiology 8 percent Neurology 7 percent Psychiatry 7 percent Pulmonology 6 percent Hematology 5 percent Oral maxillofacial 5 percent Gastroenterology 4 percent n ASC investment extremely profitable now, real estate adviser says By Patsy Newitt T he current capitalization rate, paired with income potential, has created a market primed for ASC investment, according to Paul Doelling, director of St. Louis-based real estate advisory firm Mohr Partners. Mr. Doelling also discussed how competition has shifted the ASC industry in the last five years. Editor's note: This piece was edited lightly for clarity and length. Paul Doelling: The capitalization rate and potential for making considerable net income from purchasing and leasing surgery centers is very beneficial at this time and will continue to be a profitable revenue center for physicians and other investors. Because people want the least amount of hassle before and after surgery, and demand quality care by their providers and associated staff, they will continue to go to surgeons who will provide quality care without the bureaucracy of typical large hospital systems. n