Nearly 90 percent of family physicians say that their patients are worried about being able to pay for their health care, according to a new survey of 505 physicians by the American Academy of Family Physicians. Fifty-eight percent of respondents said appointment cancellations have increased and 54 percent reported seeing fewer total patients. But 73 percent said they had seen an increase in uninsured patients visiting their offices and 64 percent reported a decrease in the number of insured patients. In addition, 60 percent said that their patients are forgoing preventive care, which has led to health problems. And nearly 90 percent of respondents have noted a significant increase in patients with major stress symptoms since the beginning of the recession. Two-thirds of the family physicians who responded said they were taking specific actions, such as discounting their fees, increasing charity care, providing free screenings, and moving patients to generic prescriptions, to help their patients manage health care.
