Health care is a hot topic in the House of Representatives, with lawmakers saying they want to help physicians and patients optimize care and value while minimizing administrative headaches.
Smaller and independent physician practices were part of the discussion in the hearing “Burdensome Red Tape: Overregulation in Health Care and the Impact on Small Businesses,” by the House Small Business Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Regulations. Meanwhile, lawmakers brought their editing pencils for the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s full markup of 15 health bills. Both hearings were held July 19 in Washington, D.C., and were broadcast online.
Subcommittee Chair Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, opened with citations from the American Hospital Association (AHA) and the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) to illustrate the disproportionate burden of regulations on small health care practices. She mentioned meeting a doctor who owned a practice but sold it “due to the ever-growing cost of keeping up with government-imposed red tape.”
Joining large health systems is not necessarily the answer for physicians or patients.
“When regulatory costs reach the point that it is no longer feasible for small, private health care practices to keep their doors open, it leads to one thing: consolidation,” Van Duyne said. “While proponents of consolidation claim that health care mergers decrease cost and improve access to care, the...
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