Here are seven key statistics on physician pay and practice costs:
1. Among physician specialists, women earn an average yearly salary of $333,000, whereas men of the same credentials earn an average of $435,000, according to Medscape's 2024 "Physician Compensation Report," published April 12.
2. Pay among specialists increased by an average of 3% compared to average earnings in 2023.
3. Fifty-one percent of physician respondents said they do not feel fairly compensated.
4. Physicians located in the West North Central area of the U.S., consisting of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota, were the highest-paid physicians by region, earning an average of $404,000 each year.
5. Here are the 10 highest-paid physician specialties:
- Orthopedic surgeons: $558,000
- Plastic surgeons: $536,000
- Cardiologists: $525,000
- Urologists: $515,000
- Gastroenterologists: $512,000
- Radiologists: $498,000
- Dermatologists: $479,000
- Anesthesiologists: $472,000
- Oncologists: $464,000
- Otolaryngologists: $459,000
6, The cost to practice medicine is growing. Inflation, specifically in healthcare, continues to rise. The Medicare Economic Index, which measures medical practice cost inflation, increased 4.6% in 2023, the highest in the last 23 years.
7. Here a breakdown of the median change in various practice expenses per full-time physician from 2013 to 2022:
|
Expense type |
Percent change (2013-2022) |
|
Median IT operating cost |
54% |
|
Median drug cost |
106% |
|
Median medical and surgical supply cost |
82% |
|
Median building and occupancy cost |
27% |
|
Median furniture and equipment cost |
42% |
|
Median administrative supplies and services cost |
33% |