Hospitals Look to Pick Off Struggling Doc Practices

What kind of a doctor doesn't have health insurance?

One who can't afford it, says Dr. Kenneth Sibila, who manages a six-physician practice in Baltimore. Sibila relies on his wife to provide health coverage.

Struggling doctors' practices are finding that going it alone may not be practical as the cost of running a business rises and reimbursements for government programs and private insurers decline. The answer? Sell to a hospital.

Here's more from the Baltimore Business Journal:

“Private practices can’t survive,” Sibila said.

But there is at least a short-term fix. Hospitals nationwide are opening their arms to primary care physicians seeking the financial security their embrace has to offer. St. Joseph Medical Center, Greater Baltimore Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center and others are buying practices, forming management agreements or structuring joint ventures with primary care practices that cannot afford to buy necessary electronic health records systems, hire more support staff or add another physician or two to the group.

About three-fourths of hospital CEOs surveyed by the American Hospital Association last year said they are being approached more frequently by physicians interested in a job. Thirty-six percent of them said more physicians are asking hospitals to buy their practices, according to the November 2009 report.

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