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Study: Physician charity care declining

Physician Practice Advisor, March 29, 2006

The proportion of physicians providing charity care dropped from 76% in 1997 to to 68% in 2005, according to a study by the Center for Studying Health System Change (HSC). Researchers attribute the decline in charity care to financial pressures, changes in physician practice arrangements, and an increase in the number of uninsured.

The study also found that physician charity care varied by

physician specialty. Surgical specialists were the most likely to provide charity care. Researchers attributed this to on call duties at hospitals where surgeons encounter many uninsured patients who need emergency services. Pediatricians were the least likely to provide charity care.
practice characteristics. Levels of charity care were highest among physicians in solo or small group practices and those that are full or partial owners of their own practice.
physician income. Seventy-six percent of physicians with practice incomes greater than $250,000 provided charity care, compared with 66% of physicians earning less than $120,000.

Click here to read the HSC report.

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