Statement attributed to
Jesse M. Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH
President, American Medical Association
“The March 18 timeline for testing Change Healthcare claims systems means significant financial disruption on physician practices will extend past 26 days before there is the possibility of establishing reliable network connections. The prospect of a month or more without a restored Change Healthcare claims system emphasizes the critical need for economic assistance to physicians, including advancing funds to financially stressed medical practices.
“The AMA agrees with UnitedHealth’s call for all payers to advance funds to physicians as the most effective way to preserve medical practice viability during the financial disruption, especially for practices that have been unable to establish workarounds to bridge the claims flow gap until the Change Healthcare network is reestablished.
“While providing needed information on timelines and new financial measures is helpful, UnitedHealth Group has more work to do to address physician concerns. Full transparency and security assurances will be critical before connections are reestablished with the Change Healthcare network.”
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The American Medical Association is the physicians’ powerful ally in patient care. As the only medical association that convenes 190+ state and specialty medical societies and other critical stakeholders, the AMA represents physicians with a unified voice to all key players in health care. The AMA leverages its strength by removing the obstacles that interfere with patient care, leading the charge to prevent chronic disease and confront public health crises and, driving the future of medicine to tackle the biggest challenges in health care.
