Physician groups across the U.S. continue to consolidate at an accelerating pace, with integrated delivery networks and health systems absorbing small independent practices, or private equity firms, public corporations and larger practice groups buying them, Healthcare Dive reports.
Between January 2019 and January 2022, 4,800 physician practices were acquired by hospitals and 31,300 were acquired by corporate entities, according to a report from the Physicians Advocacy Institute/Avalere Health. And a study by the American Medical Association found that 2020 was the first year in which fewer than half of physicians (49%) worked in private practice or a physician-owned practice. It marked an 11-percentage-point decline from eight years prior. Still, the field remains fragmented with a majority of physicians (54%) working for practices with 10 or fewer doctors. Read more.
