A new survey found that many physicians are concerned about the effects of health care reform on their practices.

But according to the survey, conducted by the firm Merritt Hawkins for The Physicians Foundation, many doctors expect their practices would be even more affected by the Medicare sustainable growth rate formula, the culprit behind a 23 percent cut in physician payment rates scheduled to take effect Dec. 1.

Thirty-six percent of doctors said fixing the formula would have a greater impact on their practices than health care reform; 34 percent said health reform would have a greater impact.

Some doctors have been limiting the number of Medicare patients they treat, or dropping the program entirely, because of concerns about the cuts, which have been postponed through four temporary patches this year.

Another temporary fix could be coming soon. The Senate passed a bill Thursday to delay the cut for another month. It still needs approval from the House and support from the President.

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Arielle Levin Becker covered health care for The Connecticut Mirror. She previously worked for The Hartford Courant, most recently as its health reporter, and has also covered small towns, courts and education in Connecticut and New Jersey. She was a finalist in 2009 for the prestigious Livingston Award for Young Journalists, a recipient of a Knight Science Journalism Fellowship and the third-place winner in 2013 for an in-depth piece on caregivers from the National Association of Health Journalists. She is a 2004 graduate of Yale University.

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