Even as a major U.S. Supreme Court ruling upholds the Affordable Care Act (ACA), a recent survey of American physicians finds doctors believe it is driving up the cost of healthcare.
Sixty-one percent of physicians report an increase in overhead costs for items such as electronic medical records and administrative costs to comply with the ACA.
And physicians report it is hurting the doctor-patient relationship, with 60 percent of doctors reporting more administrative work due to the law, resulting in less time with patients.
The law is also costing patients more, according to doctors. Fifty-one percent of patients are delaying routine screenings because of the cost of high-deductible plans associated with the ACA, the survey finds.
“The ACA had good intentions but failed to solve the major problem with healthcare – reducing costs,” says Richard L. Jackson, chairman and CEO of Jackson Healthcare, the nation’s third largest healthcare staffing company.
Jackson Healthcare surveyed 1,804 doctors across the U.S. about the health reform law in late May to mid-June 2015.
Fifty-nine percent of doctors say the law’s positive effects do not outweigh negative effects when it comes to their medical practice.
Nearly one-fourth, 23 percent of physicians, say they are either retiring, thinking of retiring or becoming part-time locum tenens/contract employees in 2015. Ninety percent of those attribute that decision to the ACA.
“Doctors are distracted from taking care of their patients with unnecessary paperwork, regulations, and expenses,” Jackson says.
However, doctors do say that the law aids patients by covering pre-existing conditions and providing routine medical screenings.
