Physicians in private practice often prefer their work culture over that of their employed physician colleagues for reasons that include a greater sense of autonomy, deeper patient relationships and more personal connection to their work. However, those attributes include special management complexities that make success challenging.
As of 2025, only 56% of medical group leaders reported revenue growth, while 30% reported a decline, according to the Medical Group Management Association. Physician private practices also need to grow revenue by 6% or more on average just to maintain margins. The volatile environment demands nimble financial management by these practices in order to thrive. Active physician engagement with revenue-cycle management (RCM) can make the difference between just getting by and actual growth.
Taylor Johnson, manager of physician practice sustainability at the AMA, noted in an interview that slim margins leave little room for error and that the ripple effects of inefficiencies can slow the claims process.
“Physicians who take ownership of their role in revenue cycle management can improve financial outcomes, patient access, care delivery and their professional well-being,” she said.
To support practices of all sizes, including those that are physician-owned, the AMA has developed a new resource (PDF) that offers pragmatic advice on navigating the complexities of revenue-cycle management while delivering care and managing a business.
Stronger performance driven by autonomy
Physician autonomy can have a positive effect on financial performance. Physician private practices are fully capable of turning work into revenue while increasing patient access. Comparing larger, health system-owned groups with independent, physician-owned practices reveals that the latter generate more profitability by delivering higher levels of care.
Physician private practices typically produce fewer work RVUs than those in system-owned practices, according to 2025 data from MGMA. However, physician private practices collected 16.1% more revenue and saw 12.2% more patients.
This advantage requires more than maintaining metrics on clinical performance. It also depends on disciplined financial management that safeguards the autonomy of these doctors and their more personalized care.
Collections, value-based care raise stakes
Practices cannot succeed relying on insurer payments alone. Patient collections also are critical. Specific checkpoints that help physician practices maintain and strengthen performance include collecting copays and deductibles at check-in, monitoring the timeliness of billing statements, and tracking how quickly balances are paid. More patients now must pay a larger share of their healthcare costs, so it’s crucial to monitor accounts receivable aging reports.
“These are important metrics for a practice to track,” Johnson said. “They will be able to see the percentage of copays and deductibles that are collected, how many statements were printed and when they were sent. Comparing that data to when statements are paid in full can also flag issues with internal processes or miscommunication with patients.”
Meanwhile, the increasing prevalence of value-based care arrangements adds another layer of complexity to RCM. While there are variations among these outcomes-oriented policies, they all share one common element: full payment does not occur until quality measures are reported and analyzed. That already has the potential to slow payment, so accurate coding and prompt billing are even more crucial. Minor errors can go unnoticed until they slow, or even stop, payment before they are caught and addressed.
Breaking down silos
For smaller physician practices without cross-trained staff, even routine tasks like coding corrections or denial follow-up can strain resources. Silos form easily and breaking them down can appear difficult, but leaders must dismantle them to ensure steady cash flow. Fortunately, they do not have to do it on their own.
“How can a leader identify and address siloing without overwhelming staff?” Johnson asked. “Don’t be afraid to reach outside. Practice leaders should feel comfortable seeking guidance and tools rather than trying to reinvent workflows on their own.”
External measures may include benchmarking against peer organizations with data from sources such as MGMA, the Healthcare Financial Management Association or EHR vendors. By comparing coding accuracy, denial rates or patient-collection metrics with practices similar to theirs, physician leaders can quickly identify where their workflows fall short and adopt proven strategies.
Professional resources or vendor-supported automation can also give practices valuable insights into how to adapt, evolve and stabilize their processes without increasing the workload of already stretched teams.
