Only 24.0% of independent practice leaders say they have high or complete visibility into where their revenue leaks, according to Veradigm's March 2026 survey of 360 practice leaders. Another 29.0% report limited or no visibility, so most practices cannot say how much money denials, underpayments and late collections cost them.
Veradigm, a health IT vendor, fielded the survey in March 2026 and released it on May 6, 2026. Medical Economics reports that 210 respondents were physicians or clinical leaders and 150 were practice managers or administrators. Hospital, health system and IDN affiliates were screened out. The sample covers independent practices only, and the sponsor sells revenue cycle products.
How much visibility do practices have?
Visibility is thin at every step that touches cash. Veradigm found that 68.0% of practices have only moderate or limited real-time visibility into accounts receivable. Fewer than a third can see the same data as it happens.
Denial timing is the clearest gap. Of the practices surveyed, 41.0% do not learn that a claim was denied for one to two weeks. Only 8.0% receive real-time denial notifications.
| Measure (Veradigm, March 2026, n=360) | Share of practices |
|---|---|
| High or complete visibility into revenue leakage | 24.0% |
| Limited or no visibility into revenue leakage | 29.0% |
| Only moderate or limited real-time A/R visibility | 68.0% |
| Learn of denied claims after 1 to 2 weeks | 41.0% |
| Receive real-time denial notifications | 8.0% |
Source: Veradigm, "Independent and Under Pressure: What 360 Practice Leaders Told Us in 2026," and Medical Economics, May 6, 2026.
The gap is easy to size. A practice that reads its denial report weekly sees each denial 7 days after it posts at the latest, while real-time alerts reach staff the same day. Only 8.0% of practices are on the faster end.
What causes the leakage?
Veradigm found that no single cause dominates. Seven of nine denial types landed between 25.0% and 39.0% of practices. The six leading causes are below.
| Denial driver | Share of practices citing it (Veradigm, 2026) |
|---|---|
| Eligibility or coverage issues | 39.0% |
| Coding errors | 38.0% |
| Missing or incomplete claim information | 34.0% |
| Prior authorization issues | 34.0% |
| Payer policy changes | 34.0% |
| Documentation gaps | 33.0% |
Source: Veradigm, "Revenue Leakage in Healthcare: What 360 Leaders See," August 21, 2026.
Experian Health's 2025 State of Claims survey of 250 healthcare professionals, released September 22, 2025, shows a similar spread. Missing or inaccurate data was the top denial reason at 50.0%, up from 46.0% in 2024. Authorizations came second at 35.0% (36.0% in 2024). Incomplete or inaccurate patient registration data was third at 32.0%, up from 30.0%.
Eligibility, registration and missing claim information all come from the front end, before a claim is built. Coding and documentation gaps, at 38.0% and 33.0% in Veradigm's data, sit with clinicians and coders.
How much financial pressure sits behind it?
Veradigm found that 54.0% of practice leaders reported more financial pressure over the past 12 months. Among practices with more than 40 clinicians, the figure was 82.0%, and 60.0% of those leaders called the pressure significant. Across the full sample, 48.0% said claim denial volumes were rising.
Respondents ranked rising operating costs as the top threat to independence at 46.0%. Administrative and regulatory burden followed at 39.0%, and reimbursement pressure at 38.0%.
Acquisition interest adds to the pressure. Veradigm reports that 94.0% of respondents were approached about acquisition or consolidation in the past two years, and more than one-third were approached four or more times. About 26.0% entered serious negotiations before deciding to stay independent, and 69.0% are very or extremely confident they will remain independent over the next three to five years.
Experian's survey puts a number on the denial side. Among its 250 respondents, 41.0% of providers face denial rates of 10.0% or higher. Also, 54.0% say claim errors are increasing, and 68.0% find clean claim submission harder than a year ago.
Who is available to fix it?
Staffing limits the response. In the Veradigm survey, billing staff were the second hardest role to recruit and retain at 44.0%, behind physicians at 48.0%. Coders followed at 38.0%. Experian found that 43.0% of providers report being understaffed.
Manual work remains the norm. Experian reports that 90.0% of denied claims are reworked with at least some human review before resubmission. Only 14.0% of its respondents use AI in the claims process, though 67.0% believe it can improve that process. Among the users, 69.0% say AI tools reduced denials or raised resubmission success.
Technology confidence is uneven. Experian found that 56.0% of providers call their current technology sufficient for revenue cycle demands, against 77.0% in 2022. Veradigm found that 79.0% of independent practice leaders rate technology as very or extremely important to staying independent, and 57.0% expect better automation to bring a significant or major improvement.
What can a practice measure on its own?
A practice can build its own baseline from the same measures the surveys use. Count the days between a payer denial and the first staff member who opens it. Split denials by driver, so eligibility errors are not mixed with coding errors. Check whether A/R can be viewed by payer and by age bucket without a manual export.
Veradigm's results show that 68.0% of practices cannot see A/R in real time at a high level, and 24.0% have high visibility into leakage.
Sources
- Veradigm, Independent and Under Pressure: What 360 Practice Leaders Told Us in 2026, March 2026
- Veradigm, Revenue Leakage in Healthcare: What 360 Leaders See, August 21, 2026
- Medical Economics, 4 in 5 independent practices say this is what's keeping them independent, May 6, 2026
- Experian Health, 3rd Annual State of Claims Survey Finds Denials Still on the Rise, September 22, 2025
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