Pennsylvania physician Pachavit Kasemsap, M.D. is a medical director manager in utilization management at Cigna and focuses his work on the efficiency and appropriateness of medical programs at the company. In addition to his work with Cigna, Dr. Pachavit Kasemsap is also a member of the American Medical Group Association (AMGA), an organization that aims to improve health and find ways to care for patients at a lower cost.
Recently, the organization published an article focused on the need for primary care practices to get help in response to the current pandemic. The article predicts a dark future for the entire sector unless funding and support are provided.
Currently, office visits have decreased almost 25 percent since the onset of the pandemic with many struggling to remain open. Moreover, according to the Commonwealth Fund, both virtual and in-person office visits have declined since the outbreak. Because of stay-at-home orders across the country compounded by office closures, revenue sources have dropped significantly.
While the federal government has assisted and the Primary Care First has initiated capitation payments (which will not go into effect until 2021), many practices would have to close their doors. For this reason, the Commonwealth Fund, America’s Health Insurance Plans, and primary care medical societies, in addition to other organizations, have asked Congress to allocate money for primary practices in the next stimulus package.
Areas of focus include telemedicine coverage and contracting strategies. With this funding, the industry organizations are hoping to encourage insurers to provide telemedicine coverage and rewarding primary care providers for providing patients high-quality care.
The alternative to not providing support is quite bleak. The public could potentially face a healthcare system where it would take six months to get an appointment to see a doctor-and simply because many physicians would be forced to close their doors leaving the ones who are still practicing overwhelmed with a patient load.
Pachavit Kasemsap 