Private equity firms are gobbling up physician practices at an accelerated pace, according to a new study published in JAMA.
Analyzing data from 2013-2016, researchers found that private equity firms acquired 59 medical practices in 2013, and three years later 136 practices were acquired.
Throughout the period analyzed, a total of 355 physician practices, comprising 1,426 sites and 5,714 physicians, were acquired by private equity firms. Although this is a small portion of total practices, industry reports suggest that this growth has continued in recent years, the study authors said.
The most commonly acquired medical groups in the study period were anesthesiology, multispecialty practices and emergency medicine.
Most of the 355 acquired practices were in the South.
"Private equity firms expect greater than 20 percent annual returns, and these financial incentives may conflict with the need for longer-term investments in practice stability, physician recruitment, quality, and safety," study authors wrote.