By Mike Donahue

Moapa Valley Progress

Obtuse and apathetic fiscal practices toward doctors by insurance companies were blamed last week by Moapa Valley family practitioner Dr. Michael Gorman for the dire financial condition in which many doctors are finding themselves.

More and more physicians including family doctors, cardiologists and oncologists are becoming casualties of serious financial issues to the point where some are actually closing their offices, according to a recent CNN Money.com report that featured Gorman. Industry watchers believe the trend is “worrisome.”

According to the report, doctors across the country blame their financial problems on changing regulations, rising business and drug costs, and, “more than anything else” on the lackasidaisical practices of insurance companies.

In an interview last week with the Progress, Gorman said that because of financial problems with insurance companies, he was forced to take out a small business administration (SBA) loan in order to pay his five employees.

“It’s extremely frustrating,” Gorman said. “We’re working our tails off taking care of patients but the insurance companies just don’t want to pay.”

Gorman explained that the SBA loan has helped him keep his head above water and he has “seen a little bit of an improvement” recently. Nevertheless, it is still very problematic.

“They (insurance companies) do anything they can to pay less and pay slower,” the doctor said. “They don’t care if it’s against your contract or not. We’re not getting reimbursed for everything we’re owed and what we get is never in a timely manner.

“The insurance companies are hanging on to money as long as they can,” he continued. “If they get a little hole where they’re not paying, they turn it into a big black hole.”

And it’s not just Gorman who is having serious problems.

Dr. William Pentz, a Philadelphia cardiologist, told CNN Money that he and his partners have tapped into their personal assets to make payroll last year.

He said recent large cuts in Medicare reimbursements for key cardiovascular services have taken a heavy toll on revenue, CNN reported.

“If this continues,” he told CNN, “I might seriously consider leaving medicine. I can’t keep working this way.”

Gorman, on the other hand, is more optimistic.

“We’re in no danger of closing,” he said. “If I thought that was possible I wouldn’t have taken out the SBA loan to pay my employees. I don’t feel overly threatened. It’s just a major concern. I’m confident we have the (patient) volume and that we’re going to be okay. The message is that we’re alright and things should improve.”

CNN quoted Gorman as planning a new strategy to deal with rising business expenses but falling reimbursements.

“I will see more patients, but I won’t check all of their complaints at one time,” he explained to the online news service. “If I do, insurance will bundle my reimbursement into one payment.”

Patients will have to make repeat visits — an arrangement that he acknowledges is “inconvenient.”

“This system pits doctor against patient,” he said. “But it’s the only way to beat the system and get paid.”