Credentialing a physician typically takes between 90 to 120 days, though optimal cases with complete documentation can be completed in 45 to 60 days, while complicated situations can extend beyond 180 days. During this waiting period, newly recruited physicians sit idle while patients who desperately need care continue waiting for appointments.The math is sobering. Credentialing delays cost the average physician over $50,000 in lost revenue, and physicians and surgeons can lose as much as $122,144 during a 120-day credentialing period. However, the real cost is not merely measured in dollars but in lives affected and care delayed.