Thumbs Down: Docs Losing Money

Physicians continue to struggle tomake ends meet, according to theAmerican Medical Group Association's(AMGA's) 2003 Medical Group FinancialOperations Survey. This report con-firmed that many doctors‘ groups areexperiencing losses in the midst of anincreasingly competitive and regulatoryenvironment. Based on financial performanceon a per physician basis (byregion), the average group lost $3977per physician. The biggest average losseswere in the Northern ($11,943) andSouthern ($12,954) regions. "The datademonstrate that many physicians arestill struggling to achieve financial success,"said Donald Fisher, PhD, AMGA'spresident and CEO. "Issues contributingto their financial challenges arecutbacks in Medicare reimbursement,rising liability premiums, increasinguncompensated care, and unfundedlegislative mandates such as HIPAA."For more information, call 703-838-0033 or visit www.amga.org.