Fifty-five percent of physicians spend at least 10 hours a week on prior authorizations, according to Medical Economics' latest "Physician Report," published Aug. 14.
The report surveyed physicians about topics including their salaries, practices' financial health, productivity, malpractice rates and the state of the profession in 2023. Responses were collected in the first half of 2024.
Here is how many hours a week respondents indicated they spend on prior authorizations each week last year:
- More than 20 hours: 19%
- 16-20 hours: 10%
- 10-15 hours: 26%
- 1-9 hours: 39%
- 0 hours: 6%
The survey also found that the average physician worked 42.5 hours per week in 2023, meaning that prior authorizations took up at least 24% of their time.