Industry News | 11.24.25
Report: Locum Tenens Usage Jumps 25% as Health Systems Combat Physician Shortages and $2.6M Revenue Gaps
By NAMSS Staff
Business Wire (10/29/25)
As physician shortages deepen across the U.S., health systems are increasingly turning to locum tenens providers to maintain patient access and revenue, according to the 2025 State of Locum Tenens Report by CHG Healthcare. Health care organizations reported that their actual locums utilization was 25 percent higher than they anticipated going into 2024. With unfilled roles costing upwards of $2.6 million per vacancy, 46 percent of leaders utilize locums to prevent revenue loss. Backfills remain the most common reason to use locums, but that reason has been declining in importance, from 82 percent in 2023 to 67 percent in 2024. Just over one-third (35 per cent) of health care organizations use locums to “meet rising patient demand” and 28 percent to supplement staff during peak periods, indicating more strategic use-cases. Anesthesiology demand surged 55 percent, while emergency medicine declined 8 percent year-to-year. Interest in telehealth opportunities is high, with 46 percent of physicians expressing interest.
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