It seems most everyone is confused about the Affordable Care Act — and that apparently includes physicians, many of whom have little faith the health care exchanges will launch on time and have little knowledge as to how the new policies will affect their practice, according to a new survey.
The survey by LocumTenens.com, a physician staffing firm, found that more than half (55%) of physicians believe the exchanges will not be ready by the Oct. 1, 2013 deadline and 57% report not being familiar with how policies purchased from state exchanges will impact their business.
Further, nearly 90% of physicians surveyed believe that consumers have not been adequately educated about how healthcare will function under the ACA.
"Everything in the news right now about the Affordable Care Act is about enrollment, and that is the logical first step," says Shane Jackson, president and chief operating officer of LocumTenens.com. "As major stakeholders and advocates in this effort, physicians should be educated about how these changes impact them, their patients and prospective patients. Our survey shows that for the most part, they are in the dark."
Despite the uncertainty, 35% of respondents have no plans to make changes due to increased patient volume expected as a result of the increased healthcare coverage.
