Practice HIT Expenses Skyrocket

While coping with rising operating costs already tops most practices' lists of challenges, technology expenses are a leading driver of that strain, according to new research from the Medical Group Management Association.

In fact, according to the MGMA Cost Survey Report: 2013 Report Based on 2012 Data, medical practices' annual expenditures per full-time-equivalent (FTE) physician for information technology have climbed 27.8 percent in just five years, from a median of $15,211 in 2008 to a reported $19,439 in 2012.