“Corporate entities are assuming control of physician practices and changing the face of medicine in the United States with little to no scrutiny from regulators,” Physicians Advocacy Institute CEO Kelly Kenney said in a news release. “Physicians have an ethical responsibility to their patients’ health. By contrast, corporate entities have a fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders and are motivated to put profits first. In some arrangements, these interests can conflict with providing the best medical care to patients.”
Here are three more things to know:
1. From 2012 to 2024, the number of physicians employed by hospitals and health systems jumped from 25.8% to 55.1%.
2. From 2022 to 2023, 19,100 additional physicians became employees of hospitals or other corporate entities, a 5.1% increase since 2022.
3. Hospitals and other corporate entities acquired 8,100 additional physician practices over that period, a 6% increase.
