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Healthcare Blog
You’ll find the latest healthcare news and announcements from Intelliworx, plus insights and analysis as we blog on the B2B topics that matter to the healthcare community, including recruitment, onboarding, credentialing, and more.
Treatment Claim Denials Put Strain on Healthcare Providers
Healthcare providers are increasingly burdened by insurance treatment denials, which delay patient care and fuel administrative overload. From time-consuming appeals to unclear approval criteria, physicians face growing frustration and burnout, all while patient trust and outcomes hang in the balance. Many are now calling for policy reform and greater transparency from payers to ease the strain and refocus on care delivery. Read the full article here: The Burden of Treatment Denials on Health Care Providers (Medical Economics)
Stuck in the middle: studies show growing tension between providers and payers
A growing body of data articulates the frustration healthcare providers have with payers over the growing complications caused by claim denials and prior authorizations by Intelliworx Some 44% of healthcare providers have considered leaving their position as a result of the claim denials. That’s according to a still new survey of 211 U.S.-based healthcare providers we recently published (downloadable PDF version here). Unfortunately, our survey is not an isolated example. Over the last 12 months or so, several other studies have drawn similar conclusions and three of those studies follow below. 1. Providers are “caught in the middle” as denials increase Nearly three quarters (73%) of respondents surveyed by Experian Health said “claim denials are increasing.” More astonishingly, the number jumped dramatically from 42% when compared to the same survey the company fielded two years prior. Even when claims are approved, providers aren’t done as 67% say payers are taking […]
A one-page marketing plan for rural healthcare to attract providers
Providers who choose to work in rural communities are drawn there for very different reasons; the key to effective recruitment rests in appealing to those motivations by Intelliworx Rural healthcare facilities are facing challenging financial times. Many have high operational costs combined with a low volume of patients. Patients in such geographies also tend to be older, more susceptible to chronic illnesses and underinsured. That combination drives up the cost of care while imposing a natural limit on cost recovery and revenue. If we sprinkle in a dose of difficulty with insurance, particularly with reimbursement, and we catch a glimpse of the vexing problem it is to deliver healthcare to rural America. The financial stress is having a compounding effect too. For example, an economic analysis by the USDA found 146 rural hospitals in the U.S. either closed or stopped providing inpatient services between 2005 and 2023. Further, the forecast […]
The one thing 116 healthcare providers would change about health insurance [verbatim]
In their own words, providers say health insurance companies deny treatments they’ve prescribed to patients too often – here’s what they would change if they could by Intelliworx More than 4 in 10 healthcare providers surveyed have considered quitting their jobs over the burden insurance sometimes places on their daily work. That’s according to a survey of providers we commissioned and published last month. The findings characterized the frustration providers have with payers over claim denials. It’s a concerning statistic given the prolonged shortage of providers that continues to challenge the healthcare community: “Given the persistent and prolonged shortage of healthcare talent, this could be an opportunity for savvy employers to stand out among rivals,” said Patrick Youngblood, DBA, SPHR. “Those who are willing and able to find creative solutions to ease the strain providers face in complying with payer demands could be a boost to provider recruiting and retention.” While we offered several suggestions […]
Healthcare providers express frustration with payers over denied treatments [survey]
Providers chafe when insurance companies second guess their medical decisions; 74% indicate it happens frequently; 45% say it takes too much time; 44% have considered quitting over the demands these engagements add to their jobs by Intelliworx When healthcare insurers deny treatments it can derail a healthcare provider’s day. Suddenly, they are thrust into a forum where they have to justify their medical decisions. Many providers say this happens too frequently and takes up too much time. That’s according to a new survey of 211 U.S.-based healthcare providers published by Intelliworx. Respondents were solicited through an independent survey panel between January 30, 2025, and February 4, 2025. The survey may well serve as a call to action for healthcare employers as well. While many providers say their employers are supportive, there is a substantial percentage who say employers could do more to help them manage this challenge. What’s more, the […]
7 observations showing how rural healthcare is overcoming the provider shortage
Rural healthcare facilities are increasingly turning to nurse practitioners (NPs), international medical graduates (IMGs) and “non-residency” physicians to fill the gaps by Intelliworx They say constraint breeds creativity. When faced with limited resources, leaders find ways to apply those resources more effectively. Constraints tend to produce creative thinking that one might not have considered otherwise. One place we’ve found this to be true is rural healthcare. A persistent shortage of healthcare providers has forced the community, especially in rural areas, to find creative ways to solve this problem. That’s an observation we found woven throughout the 2024 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives report. The report, which is the most current edition available, is produced by AMN Healthcare’s Physician Solutions division – formerly known as Merritt Hawkins. It’s compiled from a range of sources including other studies, surveys and most importantly, a “representative sample of the 2,138” provider […]
Regional provider compensation: There’s a wide delta between the highest and lowest
In one example, primary care physicians can earn up to $252,379 more annually by working in the highest-paying state in the PCP category (Mississippi) than in the lowest-paying state (Alaska) by Intelliworx The delta between the highest and lowest compensation among providers is staggering. You might think a provider stands to make more income working for a big city hospital than they do in a rural community, but that’s not always the case. Consider the following data – derived from the 2024 MGMA provider compensation data: Primary care physicians (PCP) can earn up to $252,379 more annually by working in the highest-paying state in the PCP category (Mississippi) than in the lowest-paying state (Alaska); Surgical specialists can earn up to $504,277 more annually by working in the highest-paying state in the surgical category (South Carolina) than in the lowest-paying state (Wyoming); Non-surgical specialists can earn up to $508,468 more annually […]
Provider compensation: AAPs see the biggest jump in pay
Nurse practitioners and physician assistants netted a 6.47% increase in total compensation, however, physicians still earn far more in comparison by Intelliworx Compensation is always a top priority in recruiting and retention – and salaries continue to grow in healthcare. MGMA illustrates this in its most recent compensation report: “Median total compensation for physicians in primary care, surgical specialties and nonsurgical specialties saw modest increases in 2023, as well as total compensation for APPs.” APPs, or advanced practice providers, which includes nurse practitioners (NPs) and physician assistants (PAs) saw the biggest jump according to the association: “For APPs, total median compensation outpaced the gains seen for physicians, with a 6.47% increase in 2023, contributing to a 16.23% gain since pre-pandemic 2019 levels.” Among just physicians, and excluding APPs, those fulfilling primary care roles saw a larger bump in pay: “The largest gains in total median compensation were for primary care […]
Healthcare physician productivity has skyrocketed
Data suggests technology investment has enabled providers to be more productive; physician-owned practices edge out hospital-owned practices by measure of wRVUs by Intelliworx Physicians have become increasingly more productive over the last decade or so. That’s according to the 2024 Provider Compensation Data Report by the Medical Group Management Association (MGMA). That finding was included in a report published last year, which reflects data from more than 211,000 physicians and advanced practice providers (APPs). APPs include nurse practitioners and physician assistants. It covers data through the year ending 2023 and is the most recent the association has currently available publicly. MGMA came to that conclusion by analyzing what the medical community refers to as “Work Relative Value Units” (wRVU). The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) says wRVUs reflect a “physician’s work, including mental effort, decision making, technical skills, physical effort, stress related to patient risk, and amount of time […]
The 7 most-read posts on the Intelliworx government and healthcare blog in 2024
CX, predictions for government technology next year, telework and government modernization are among the most popular blog posts we published in 2025 by Intelliworx This year is the first year we’ve made a real effort to weigh in with our thinking on government technology. We also began our first venture into developing software for private-sector healthcare facilities in rural areas – to address the talent crunch. In total, we published 32 blog posts about government and healthcare. That’s a good start for the first year and we wanted to see which ones were most popular. So, for our final post of 2024, here are the most-read posts on the Intelliworx blog, based on a review of reader analytics. Number 7: Government and citizens stand to gain from CX improvements Martha Dorris says good customer experience (CX) is a ‘patriotic’ initiative that provides better service and enables the government to run […]