Independent Practice

Independent physicians have spent more than a decade watching the share of their peers who own their own practices shrink.  New data exists that tells the story of what it now costs to stay independent, how much deal-making and closure…

For Emeka Nwodim, MD, the future of independent medicine may hinge on a seeming contradiction: Physicians may have to get bigger to remain independent. The economics that once allowed an orthopedic practice to thrive largely by seeing patients and performing…

While the decline of independent practice has persisted as a general trend across medicine, the consolidation of physician practices has played out differently across specialties.  A 2025 specialty-level breakdown of independent practice published by the American Medical Association found private-practice…

The questions Mikel Daniels, DPM, gets from job candidates today are almost unrecognizable compared with 25 years ago, he recently told Becker’s.  “It has been years since anybody I’ve interviewed asked me about how they become a partner in that…

Monarch has added Charleston, S.C.-based Recalibrate Health to its nationwide network of independent, concierge OB-GYN practices, the company announced Aug. 25. Monarch operates a zero-equity platform that gives physicians 100% ownership of their practices along with upfront capital, office buildout,…

The steady migration of physicians away from independent practice is often framed as a hospital consolidation story.  Thomas Balcezak, MD, executive vice president and chief clinical officer of New Haven, Conn.-based Yale New Haven Health, sees another force driving much…

For more than a decade, the story of physician employment has been one of steady consolidation, with more physicians shifting to employment by hospitals, health systems and corporately owned practices. But as employment increases, so has a sense of moral…

For much of the past decade, the story of physicians’ practice has moved decidedly away from independence.  Hospital and corporate employment of physicians climbed from 62% to 78% between 2019 and 2023, and private practice fell from 60% of physicians…

Physician employment by hospitals, health systems and other corporate entities has become a default in medicine as independent practice dwindles across most specialties Hospital, health system and corporate ownership of physician practices climbed from 39% to 59% between 2019 and…

The conversation surrounding orthopedic and spine practice consolidation often frames the question as who owns the practice. However, according to surgeons, what matters most is who has a voice in the decisions. Private equity often dominates the conversation about orthopedic…