About 43 percent of physicians said they expected to participate in the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act in an annual Medscape survey.
MACRA is technically optional for physicians in 2017. CMS decided to create a gradual ramp to participation and allow physicians to pick their pace for 2017 participation, ranging from no participation — with an associated penalty — to full-on, year-round participation.
At the time the Medscape conducted the survey — between Dec. 20, 2016 and March 7, 2017 — 35 percent of physicians remained undecided on how they planned to approach MACRA, according to the report. Medscape's Physician Compensation Report includes responses from more than 19,200 physicians.
Physicians in the following 10 specialties were most likely to plan on participating in MACRA in 2017, according to the survey.
- Ophthalmology — 64 percent expected to participate
- Nephrology — 61 percent
- Urology — 60 percent
- Dermatology — 57 percent
- Cardiology — 55 percent
- Gastroenterology — 54 percent
- Anesthesiology — 53 percent
- Radiology — 50 percent
- Otolaryngology — 50 percent
- Family Medicine — 49 percent
Specialties least likely to report expected participation in MACRA included psychiatry (19 percent expected to participate), plastic surgery (25 percent) and pediatrics (33 percent).
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