---

Doc says ‘physicians have reached a tipping point’ [VIDEO]
...In 1995, Westchester Orthopedic employed one person to perform administrative tasks. By the late ’90s, they employed one per doctor.

Mark Smith, president of physician recruiter Merritt Hawkins in Irving, Texas, said there are more regulations today than ever before. Doctors in his association report spending 60 percent of their time on completing regulatory paperwork.

“There have even been reports of small practices going out of business,” Smith said. “This has been unheard of in my 24 years in this organization.”

In 2009, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act mandated specific data collection that increased costs on doctor’s private practices without increasing reimbursements. The next year, the Obamacare decreased reimbursement and specified more reporting requirements — again increasing costs....