Corporatization has emerged as a common phrase to describe the heightened levels of corporate ownership and consolidation of healthcare practices in the U.S.
While there is no one metric to quantify this term, here are 10 new data points, legislative updates and other developments that highlight the rise of corporate influence among physicians.
1. Only 42.2% of physicians were working in private practice in 2024, a dramatic decline from 60.1% in 2012, according to the American Medical Association’s Physician Practice Benchmark Report published May 29. Private practice has slipped below 50% representation in most medical specialties. Participation ranges from just 30.7% in cardiology to 46.9% in radiology.
2. In 2024, 6.5% of physicians reported working in private equity-owned practices, up from around 4.5% in 2020 and 2022, according to the AMA.
3. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed a bill enacting the strictest regulatory regime on private equity and corporate control of medical practices in the nation June 9. Support for the bill grew markedly after healthcare giant Optum took over Eugene-based Oregon Medical Group, the Oregon Capital Chronicle reported June 9. The corporate takeover resulted in dozens of physicians leaving the area due to noncompete agreements, further fragmenting healthcare access for patients.
“We’re at an inflection point in this country when it comes to the corporatization of healthcare,” said Oregon House Majority Leader Ben Bowman in a statement May 28 following the bill’s passage in the chamber. “With the passage of this bill, every Oregonian will know that decisions in exam rooms are being made by doctors, not corporate executives.”
4. The first legislative session of 2025 also saw several states, including Connecticut, Maine and New York propose legislation that created new or expanded existing notice requirements for private equity deals in healthcare, specifically for physician practices and management services organizations.
5. Unionization among physicians has skyrocketed in recent years as consolidation and burnout rise, while physician autonomy and satisfaction diminish. During 2023 to 2024, there were 33 petition filings for bargaining units that included physicians, compared with just 44 in 2000 to 2022. Moreover, most recent unionization efforts were driven by noncompensation issues, such as working conditions and lack of voice in management, according to a 2024 study by JAMA.
6. ASCs have also been particularly impacted by a spike in corporate influence, as many large health systems and private equity-backed management groups take notice of ASCs’ high potential for profit and relatively lower cost of operation.
“Mergers and acquisitions have always been part of our industry, but the current pace is staggering. I don’t view it as inherently good or bad — it’s just the way things are evolving,” Simon Schwartz, associate director of the Colorado Ambulatory Center Association and chief operations officer of Englewood-based Strategic Resources Group Colorado, told Becker’s. “Physician practices are entering agreements with large healthcare providers, sometimes with different expectations than the reality they encounter.”
7. More than 40% of independent medical practices closed or were acquired by hospitals, health systems and other corporate entities, including payer-affiliated healthcare groups and private equity, according to a study published by Avalere and the Physicians Advocacy Institute.
8. Corporate entities nearly doubled ownership of practices in rural areas and employed 57% more physicians than in 2019, according to the study.
9. Corporatization has also fragmented anesthesia care, consequently increasing the costs of these services for ASCs and other facilities.
“There’s a lot of physicians and healthcare workers in general that are trying to gain back some autonomy, some control, some freedom,” Scott Mayer, CEO of Ambulatory Anesthesia Care in Rosemont, Ill., told Becker’s. “The consolidators just keep getting bigger, whether it comes to platforms or health systems, it’s definitely becoming more corporate. That’s forced a lot of [providers] — especially on the anesthesia side — to be their own independent contractors.”10. A GOP-written budget reconciliation bill that cleared the House of Representatives May 22 by a 215–214 vote would eliminate the pass-through entity tax deduction. More than 20 national medical organizations wrote in a May 20 letter that the elimination would raise taxes on private medical practices. The letter argues it unfairly targets service-based professionals and would widen the tax gap between small practices and large corporations.
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