Majority of Americans Worried about Impact of Hospital Mergers

More than 60% of Americans are concerned about the impact of hospital mergers and acquisitions on their access to affordable care, and 25% believe this trend is a major threat to their health, according to a recent survey. The survey also revealed that patients trust independent physicians and smaller practices, rather than those employed by hospital systems.

The survey was conducted by international polling firm YouGov, on behalf of LUGPA, a trade association that represents independent urology group practices in the U.S. It polled 1,191 adults across the country.

A whopping 69% of respondents think some kind of action should be taken by the government to prevent the continued trend of hospital mergers and acquisitions. Likewise, 36% of respondents think Congress should do more to regulate hospitals taking over independent practices, to prevent them from gaining excessive market share. Most feel the solution is to incentivize independent physicians or require insurers to compensate all medical practices equally, a model known as “site-neutral payments.”

“Given the rapidly increasing rate of hospital mergers and acquisitions, patients will continue to feel the pain in their wallets and in their quality of care,” contended Richard G. Harris, MD, president of LUGPA. “Congress has begun to take notice of the public health impact, and we encourage them to continue building on site-of-service reforms, so that patients pay the same amount for a service regardless of where it is performed or if that practice was acquired by a hospital.”

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