As millions of previously uninsured Americans obtain healthcare coverage through the ACA, access to physician services becomes more critical. Merritt Hawkins’ 2014 Survey of Physician Appointment Wait Times and Medicaid and Medicare Acceptance Rates offers a snapshot of physician availability in 15 large metropolitan markets, many of them with physician-to-population ratios higher than the national average. The average appointment wait time to see a family physician ranged from a high of 66 days in Boston to a low of 5 days in Dallas.

1. 2014
Physician
Appointment
WA I T
T I M ES
A survey examining the time needed to schedule a physician
appointment in 15 major metropolitan markets and rates of
Medicaid and Medicare acceptance by physicians in those markets
KEY FINDINGS
Average wait time in days to schedule an appointment with a physician in family
practice, cardiology, dermatology, orthopedic surgery, or obstetrics/gynecology.
Average wait time in days to schedule
an appointment with a family physician.
SEATTLE
16 | 23
BOSTON
45.4 | 66
PORTLAND
19.4 | 13
PHILADELPHIA
20.6 | 21
MINNEAPOLIS
DENVER
19.2 | 10
23.6 | 16
DETROIT
17.8 | 16
16.8 | 26
WASHINGTON D.C.
LOS ANGELES
12.2 | 20
ATLANTA
10.2 | 5
16.2 | 7
17.8 | 14
14 | 24
DALLAS
SAN DIEGO
NEW YORK
HOUSTON
14 | 19
MIAMI
13.6 | 12
CUMULATIVE WAIT TIME
FAMILY
18.5 ALL
SPECIALTIES | 19.5 PRACTICE
Merritt Hawkins is the leading physician search and consulting firm in
the United States and is a company of AMN Healthcare (NYSE: AHS). For
additional information access merritthawkins.com or call 800-876-0500.