21% of Physicians Furloughed, Had Pay Cut During COVID-19 Crisis

Furloughs and pay cuts are just two ways the COVID-19 crisis has changed the physician’s role, according to a new survey from Merritt Hawkins and the Physicians Foundation.

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About one in five physicians (21 percent) have been furloughed or experienced a pay cut as a result of COVID-19, revealed survey data from 842 physicians across the country. About a third (32 percent) of physicians also indicated that they would change their employment status because of the novel coronavirus.

Specifically, 14 percent of physicians plan to change practice settings, and 18 percent plan to retire, temporarily close their practices, or opt-out of patient care roles entirely. Only 30 percent of physicians treating COVID-19 patients will continue to see patients despite reporting high levels of stress.

“Even prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, physicians were expressing dissatisfaction in their jobs and experiencing high rates of burnout and mental health issues caused by stressors like regulatory burdens and EHR use,” stated Gary Price, MD, president of The Physicians Foundation.

“The pandemic is straining physicians further and we need to prioritize providing solutions that will ease the financial and emotional burdens they are feeling as a means to improve their wellbeing now and after the crisis is resolved,” Price continued. “It is the least we can do for the health care workers who are risking their lives to take care of everyone else.”

The way physicians deliver care has fundamentally changed due to COVID-19. In a matter of a couple of weeks, the number of cases in the US skyrocketed suddenly, reaching over 990,000 confirmed cases according to data from Johns Hopkins University at the time of publication.

To manage the surge of patients, physicians have canceled or postponed elective procedures that normally drive revenue. At the same time, physicians have had to prepare their organizations for COVID-19 patients, including building staff, capacity, and supplies.

The survey found that 38 percent of physicians are seeing COVID-19 patients. About 60 percent of physicians who are not currently treating COVID-19 patients are willing to do so.

However, balancing revenue losses with higher expenses has been difficult for many physicians, leading to many tough decisions, such as furloughing staff and cutting compensation.

Physicians have turned to telemedicine to keep from teetering too far. Nearly half (48 percent) of physicians responding to the survey said they were using telemedicine to treat patients. That percentage was up from just 18 percent of physicians in a 2018 survey conducted by the Physicians Foundation.

Regulatory flexibilities and payment parity for virtual visits have helped physicians implement telemedicine during the pandemic, explained Travis Singleton, executive vice president of Merritt Hawkins.

“One positive result of the pandemic is that barriers to accessing physician services through telemedicine may be reduced, which will be critical as the nation deals with a growing physician shortage,” said Singleton.

The healthcare industry is slated to be short between 42,600 and 121,300 doctors by 2032, according to the latest estimate from the Association of American Medical Colleges. Telemedicine can help alleviate the shortage by connecting physicians and patients virtually, but COVID-19 could put more pressure on the healthcare system as more physicians stop practicing.

“The impact on physicians from COVID-19 is going to be transformative,” Singleton stated.  “The way patients access physicians and how and where physicians practice will fundamentally change.”

“Once the pandemic has been contained there will be a backlog of procedures and pervasive Covid-19 testing.  Physician reengagement and retention will be of even more importance,” Singleton said.