One-third of doctors' offices don't accept credit cards

One in three physicians' offices does not accept credit cards-a 5 percent increase from 2008, according to a survey released by SK&A Information Services of Irvine, California.

The group conducted a telephone survey of 202,650 physician offices nationwide in the spring and found that ophthalmology (84 percent), bariatrics (83 percent), and otolaryngology (83 percent) were the most accepting of plastic, while dialysis (27 percent), geriatric medicine (32 percent), and nuclear medicine (35 percent) specialties were the least accepting. Among the primary care specialties, ob/gyns totaled the highest rate of acceptance at 78 percent.