Survey
Survey
The Latest on Physician Autonomy and Impact on Patient Care
The U.S. healthcare system is at a breaking point, and patients are feeling the impact through reduced access, limited quality time with physicians, higher costs and fragmented care.
External pressures—such as healthcare consolidation through mergers, acquisitions and private equity funding—are reshaping where and how patients receive care. Too often, these changes compromise timely, affordable and high-quality services. It also means doctors often lose control over how care is delivered to their patients.
This year, the Foundation conducted an online survey of 1,000+ U.S. physicians on the state of physician practice environments, who were derived from Medscape’s proprietary database. The survey was fielded from May 21 – May 29, 2025.
Patient care is paying the price.
- Nearly two-thirds of physicians report that limits on their autonomy negatively impact the quality and timeliness of patient care, and over half say patient satisfaction is suffering.
Unsustainable pressure on physicians increases stress and threaten access for patients.
- About three-quarters of physicians say autonomy limits are increasing their stress.
- More than four in ten physicians say these limits are pushing them toward career changes or earlier retirement.
- Seven in ten know colleagues who already left due to loss of autonomy—signaling fewer available physicians and worsening access for patients.
Consolidation and third-party control risk the future of personalized care.
- Physicians overwhelmingly (9 in 10) believe the loss of autonomy is a major threat to U.S. medicine and will worsen the physician shortage.
- Physicians cite third ‑ party practice acquisition (83%) and rapid consolidation (74%) as key drivers, raising alarms that more centralized control could reduce personalized, physician‑led decision‑making for patients.
- More than 7 in 10 physicians also call for stronger state oversight to safeguard physician leadership in care decisions.
