America's family physicians are increasing charity care, discounting fees and providing free screenings to help patients meet their healthcare needs during economically stressful times, according to an American Academy of Family Physicians national survey.
The survey confirms the negative and potentially serious impact the recession is having on Americans' access to healthcare.
The national poll of AAFP members shows that nearly 90 percent of the family physicians surveyed reported their "patients have expressed concerns recently over their ability to pay for their healthcare needs." In fact, 58 percent said they had "seen an increase in appointment cancellations."
"The survey found that patients are canceling or deferring important preventive screenings such as pap smears, mammograms and colonoscopies," said Ted Epperly, MD, the AAFP's president. "They also are failing to return for recommended follow-up visits or refill medications that are vital to managing their chronic conditions. Rather than forgoing needed medication altogether, some patients opt to cut their prescriptions, without their physician's knowledge, to make them last longer."
Sixty-six percent of the family physicians who responded said they're taking specific actions, such as discounting their fees, increasing charity care, providing free screenings and moving patients to generic prescriptions, to help patients manage healthcare needs with respect to the current economic climate.
The survey also found:
- more than half (54 percent) of the respondents reported seeing fewer total patients since the recession began in January 2008;
- just under three quarters said they had seen an increase in uninsured patients visiting their offices;
- sixty-four percent reported a decrease in the number of employer-sponsored/privately insured patients; and
- eighty-seven percent reported they had seen a significant increase in patients with major stress symptoms since the beginning of the recession.
Despite cost-cutting measures, the economic environment is still causing anxiety among patients and is leading them to discuss other healthcare options with their physician.
"The AAFP supports healthcare coverage for all Americans regardless of their employment status or socioeconomic status," said Epperly. "To achieve that goal and provide better care for all Americans in a cost-efficient manner, we must move toward a healthcare system based on enhanced primary care."
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