ClinicOps / Briefings / By the numbers
Data · Published Aug 2, 2026
40 Prior Auths Per Physician, Every Week: 8 Numbers From the AMA's 2025 Survey
Eight prior authorization statistics for 2026, each sourced and dated, from the AMA's 2025 survey, Experian, and Premier. Built to be quoted, so cite the page.
Jareer Ali·
Research & field notes·
6 min read
Prior authorization statistics for 2026 show a burden that is still climbing: about 40 requests per physician each week, 13 hours of physician and staff time, and a denial that now costs $57.23 to rework. The figures below are sourced to the 2025 AMA survey, Experian, and Premier.
Key takeaways
- Physicians complete about 40 prior auth requests a week and spend 13 hours of physician and staff time on them (2025 AMA survey).
- 40% of practices employ staff working exclusively on prior auth, and 94% of physicians say it fuels burnout.
- Reworking a single denied claim costs $57.23, up 30% from $43.84 two years earlier (Premier).
- Half of providers name missing or inaccurate data as the top driver of denials (Experian, 2025).
The 8 numbers
Every figure below carries its source and year. Use them, that is what they are for.
| Number | What it means | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 13 hrs / wk | Physician and staff time spent on prior auth, per physician, every week | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| 40 / wk | Prior auth requests the average physician completes weekly, up from 39 in 2024 | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| 40% | Practices that employ staff working exclusively on prior authorization | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| 32% | Physicians who say requests are often or always denied | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| 94% | Physicians who say prior auth contributes to burnout | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| 74% | Physicians who say denials rose over the past five years | 2025 AMA PA Survey |
| $57.23 | Cost to rework one denied claim in 2023, up from $43.84 in 2022 | Premier |
| 50% | Providers naming missing or inaccurate data as the top driver of denials | Experian, 2025 |
What the numbers say together
Read as a set, they tell one story. The volume is up (40 a week, from 39). The time is brutal and unbillable (13 hours). Practices have thrown people at it (40% with dedicated staff) and it still burns physicians out (94%). And the denials that follow are getting more expensive to fight, with a single rework now at $57.23, a 30% jump in one year.
The most useful number for a practice is the last one. Half of providers say the top driver of denials is missing or inaccurate data (Experian, 2025). That is not a clinical dispute. It is a capture problem you can fix at the front end, before a claim is ever submitted.
Turn the numbers into a system
Statistics are the case for change, not the change itself. If these figures describe your practice, the next step is a process that stops them from repeating: one tracked board, an owner per request, follow-up and expiration alarms, and a denial log that catches the data problems the Experian number points to.
- Prior Authorization for Independent Practices: the complete operations guide
The seven-stage process and the system that seals each leak.
- Prior auth takes 13 hours a week per physician. Here is the system that fixes it
Where the time goes, and how to get it back.
- Free prior authorization tracking spreadsheet
The board these numbers argue for, free to download.
Find your leak before you fix it
Two ways to start, both free.
Take the tracker and denial log and run it yourself, or book a 20-minute Leak Audit where we put a real number on what your prior auth process is costing, using your own volume.
Frequently asked questions
How many prior authorizations do physicians do per week?
About 40 per physician, per week, according to the 2025 AMA Prior Authorization Physician Survey, up from 39 in the 2024 survey.
How much time does prior authorization take each week?
Prior authorization consumes an average of 13 hours of physician and staff time per physician every week (2025 AMA Prior Authorization Physician Survey).
What is the latest AMA prior authorization survey?
The 2025 AMA Prior Authorization Physician Survey, which polled 1,000 practicing physicians and was released in May 2026.
How much does it cost to rework a denied claim?
The average administrative cost to rework a single denied claim rose to $57.23 in 2023, up from $43.84 in 2022, according to Premier.
Is prior authorization getting better?
Not by the numbers. In the 2025 AMA survey, 74% of physicians said denials rose over the past five years, and only about one in three expect the latest insurer reform pledge to make a meaningful difference.