While private payers often reimburse at higher rates than Medicare, physicians and their employers still want better relationships with them, according to Medscape's 2024 "Physician-Private Payer Relationship Report."
The survey questioned 1,030 respondents across over 29 specialties between Feb. 1, 2024, and March 19, 2024.
Sixty percent said the reimbursement rates they receive from private payers are "average," and 22% said they are "low." Another 13% responded that reimbursement rates were "high" on average.
Physicians also expressed mixed feelings about their employer's ability to negotiate with private payers. Forty-five percent said that their employer has "no leverage" at all when it comes to negotiating payer contracts, and another 49% said their employer has "some leverage."
For 38% of respondents, reimbursement rates from private payers have not changed much over the past five years, while around one-third said that rates have declined somewhat.