The impact of the Change Healthcare cyberattack is financially hurting thousands of doctor practices with 80 percent of physicians reporting “lost revenue from unpaid claims,” according to a survey by the American Medical Association.
The AMA, which is the nation’s largest doctor group, said the attack has threatened the viability of physician practices across the country with more than half of survey respondents having “had to use personal funds to cover practice expenses.”
The aftermath of the February cyberattack has triggered chaos for physicians and medical care providers across the country, paralyzing the largest billing and payment system in the U.S. The attack triggered a shutdown of parts of Change Healthcare’s electronic system, leaving doctors and other providers of medical care without the ability to get insurance approval of patient services.
“The disruption caused by this cyber-attack is causing tremendous financial strain,” said AMA President Dr. Jesse M. Ehrenfeld. “These survey data show, in stark terms, that practices will close because of this incident, and patients will lose access to their physicians. The one-two punch of compounding Medicare cuts and inability to process claims as a result of this attack is devastating to physician practices that are already struggling to keep their doors open.”
The AMA survey, which was conducted March 26 to April 3, also showed: “36 percent of respondents reporting suspension in claim payment; 32 percent being unable to submit claims; and 22 percent being unable to verify eligibility for benefits.”
For its part, UnitedHealth Group, parent of Change Healthcare, said as of April 3 it has “advanced nearly $4.7 billion to providers in need and will continue to provide financial support to providers through full system recovery”
“Significant enhancements are available to providers who receive payments from payers processed by Change Healthcare; UnitedHealthcare medical, dental and vision providers; and providers who have exhausted all available connection options — or are in the process of implementing workaround solutions — and work with other payers who have opted not to advance funds while the Change systems are down,” UnitedHealth Group said on its website, which includes other information and tutorials to help medical care providers impacted by the attack.
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