Providers believe AI is the key to easing prior auth burdens: survey

The survey also highlighted where providers are still seeing delays and hurdles related to prior authorization, as well as where the technology still lags in terms of making the process all-digital. (Getty/BrianAJackson)

Providers are betting on artificial intelligence to ease the pain point of prior authorization, a new survey shows.

Cohere Health, which provides clinical intelligence to insurers and risk-bearing providers, polled 200 clinicians and office administrators and found that 99% of clinicians report confidence in using AI to back prior authorization. Most (96%) office administrators said the same.

Two-thirds of those surveyed said a completely digital prior authorization process would significantly improve their workflows. Across the board, the respondents said the process should have real-time tracking baked into the experience, allowing them to track the status of key requests.

“Providers are speaking loud and clear: they want and deserve a prior authorization process that is smarter, simpler and more transparent,” said Brian Covino, M.D., chief medical officer of Cohere Health, in an announcement.

The survey also highlighted where providers are still seeing delays and hurdles related to prior authorization as well as where the technology lags in terms of making the process all-digital.

Insurers will be under new prior authorization requirements from the feds starting Jan. 1, which will require them to respond more quickly to submitted requests. Under the rule, they'll have 72 hours to respond to urgent requests and seven days for other submissions; per the Cohere survey, just 12% of clinicians and 7% of administrators say they receive submissions in that time frame at present.

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