Please confirm that you would like to log out of Medscape.
If you log out, you will be required to enter your username and password the next time you visit.
Log outCancel
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020
| Contributor Information
Swipe to advance
1 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
COVID-19 has affected every facet of being a physician, including compensation.
The pandemic is "no doubt" going to have a negative effect on physician income, at least in the short term, says Travis Singleton, executive vice president for physician search and recruitment firm Merritt Hawkins/AMN Leadership Solutions. He points to his firm's research, noting that 21% of physicians have experienced a pay cut or furlough due to COVID-19.
"You are also likely to see changes in how contracts are structured, away from fee-for-service and toward fee-for-value, a path we were already on that will be accelerated by COVID," he says. "Because physician salaries have been reduced and their production is down to virtually zero, various parties, including payers, are coming to the table for change."
The data for this year's report were collected prior to February 11, 2020, and reflect physician salary and income prior to the COVID-19 crisis. More than 3200 young physicians (those under 40 years of age) responded to this year's survey to weigh in on everything from their salary to their satisfaction in practicing medicine.
2 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Survey respondents reported their compensation for patient care. For employed physicians, that includes salary, bonus, and profit-sharing contributions. For self-employed physicians, it includes earnings after taxes and deductible business expenses, before income tax. Only full-time salaries are included in our results.
Overall, prior to COVID-19, physician income continued to rise. In last year's report, primary care physicians earned an average of $237,000, compared with $243,000 this year (a 2.5% increase). Specialists earned an average of $341,000, compared with $346,000 this year (a 1.5% increase).
(Note: Label values on charts have been rounded, but rankings and calculations are based on raw data to avoid rounding errors.)
3 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Older primary care physicians and specialists earn considerably more than their younger peers. For the second straight year, this pay gap is more than $60,000 annually. In our 2019 Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report, specialists over the age of 40 earned around $64,000 more than younger physicians annually, and primary care physicians earned $60,000 more.
Singleton says younger physicians usually have to develop a practice to reach the same volumes — and therefore the same income — as older physicians. However, younger physicians also want more guaranteed salary rather than a compensation package based on production.
4 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Nearly a quarter of young physicians have some kind of incentive bonus. The percentage of primary care physicians with an incentive bonus is similar across age groups, while for specialists it's lower among older physicians.
5 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Physicians between the ages of 40 and 69 reported a higher base salary as well as higher annual incentive bonuses.
6 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
The purpose of an incentive bonus is typically to motivate physicians to work longer, see more patients, or achieve certain targets. However, only one third of young physicians report that they are motivated to work more hours to achieve that bonus.
7 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Among younger physicians, 42% are women, similar to last year's results. Among older physicians (aged 40-69 years), there is a lower percentage of female physicians.
8 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Whereas a larger percentage of older physicians are Caucasian/White, other racial and ethnic groups are entering the field in larger numbers among younger physicians. This year's results are similar to last year's.
9 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Employment continues to be a more popular work situation among younger physicians. For the fifth straight year, the majority of physicians younger than 40 are employed. And that trend may continue, according to the 2020 Medscape Residents Salary & Debt Report, as only 21% of residents are considering self-employment for their future.
Singleton said he is surprised by 21%, expecting that number to be even lower. "Self-employment has simply become unworkable for many physicians, given what is required to provide care in today's highly complex system, in which payment and delivery models are changing. I think many physicians would prefer independent practice because of the autonomy it provides, but it is just too hard to execute."
10 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Regardless of the practice model, physicians aged 40 years or older earn more than younger physicians, as is the case in virtually all occupations where years of experience is factored into compensation. The largest pay difference between young and older physicians exists in outpatient clinics, followed by healthcare organizations and hospitals. Physicians younger than 40 years are earning the most in office-based single-specialty group practices.
11 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
It's not surprising that far more younger physicians have college or medical school loans — for themselves and for their spouse — than do physicians over the age of 40. Younger doctors more so than their older peers note childcare (30% vs 11%) and paying off a spouse's or significant other's school loans (23% vs 8%) as a major expense.
12 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
In this year's report, young ob/gyns and family physicians most often carry debt from school loans, followed by pediatricians and orthopedists. Internists ranked lowest on amount of school loan debt.
According to the Medscape Physician Debt and Net Worth Report 2020, among physicians of all ages, physical medicine and rehabilitation physicians as well as family medicine physicians were at the top of the list of those still paying down school loans.
13 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
These data express the percentage difference of young physicians satisfied with their compensation compared with older physicians. For example, in rheumatology, 67% of young doctors were satisfied compared with 50% of older physicians, so the difference in percentage satisfied was 17 percentage points. Cardiologists and infectious disease physicians also had large gaps in satisfaction with annual pay, though older physicians were more satisfied than younger ones.
14 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
About three quarters of physicians of all ages say they will continue taking new and current Medicare and Medicaid patients. More older than younger physicians still have not decided what to do regarding government payers.
15 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Less than half of young primary care physicians expect to participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS), as do a similar percentage of young specialists. Nearly the same percentage of primary care physicians and specialists under the age of 40 anticipate participation in alternative payment models (APMs).
16 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Most physicians' work includes a combination of time with patients and time spent on paperwork, meetings, and reporting. According to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2020, physicians overall spend an average of 37.8 hours per week seeing patients.
17 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Administrative work continues to take a toll on younger and older physicians alike. For the third straight year, about three quarters of both age groups spend 10 or more hours each week on paperwork and administrative duties.
18 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
The large majority of both young and older physicians discuss treatment costs with their patients. Only one fifth of both age groups say they do not have this conversation in the exam room.
19 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Nearly twice as many younger employed physicians seek promotion compared with older physicians, not surprising for those just starting out their medical careers.
20 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Younger male physicians seek promotion in larger percentages than their female counterparts do. Conversely, older female physicians more often seek promotion vs their male peers.
21 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Younger physicians most often find the gratitude from and relationships with patients rewarding, the same as their peers overall. Nearly one quarter said knowing that they are making the world a better place is also rewarding, similar to physicians overall.
22 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Numerous rules and regulations, as well as dealing with difficult patients, are the main challenges facing physicians under the age of 40. Compared with all physicians (15%), younger physicians (9%) less often see electronic health records as a burden, perhaps owing to their comfort level, having grown up with technology.
23 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Similar to their peers ages 40-69, three quarters of younger physicians would choose medicine again if they could redo their career path. This is similar to the percentage of physicians overall.
24 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Overwhelmingly, most young physicians in various specialties would choose a medical career again.
25 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
A large majority of young physicians would pick the same specialty if they had to choose a career path again. The largest percentages were among oncologists, ophthalmologists, and orthopedists.
26 of 27
Scroll
Medscape Young Physician Compensation Report 2020
Keith L. Martin | September 4, 2020 | Contributor Information
Medscape's Hospitalist Compensation Report explores annual earnings, incentive bonuses, time spent on paperwork and administration, and how physicians feel about their careers.Medscape Features Slideshow, July 2020
Commenting is limited to medical professionals. To comment please Log-in.
Comments on Medscape are moderated and should be professional in tone and on topic. You must declare any conflicts of interest related to your comments and responses. Please see our Commenting Guide for further information. We reserve the right to remove posts at our sole discretion.
Comments on Medscape are moderated and should be professional in tone and on topic. You must declare any conflicts of interest related to your comments and responses. Please see our Commenting Guide for further information. We reserve the right to remove posts at our sole discretion.
Close
Contributor Information
Author
Keith L. Martin
Editorial Director, Medscape Business of Medicine
Close
References
MGMA. COVID-19 Financial Impact on Medical Practices. Source
Eldred SM. Firings, furloughs, and pay cuts in advance of COVID-19 surge. Medscape Medical News. March 31, 2020. Source
Sainato M. US for-profit healthcare sector cuts thousands of jobs as pandemic rages. The Guardian. April 14, 2020. Source
Kareo. Kareo survey reveals coronavirus pandemic impact on independent medical practices and their patients. April 6, 2020. Source
IQVIA. Monitoring the Impact of COVID-19 on the Pharmaceutical Market. April 17, 2020. Source
Close
Image Zoom
Close
Feedback
Please do not use this form to submit personal or patient medical information or to report adverse drug events. You are encouraged to report adverse drug event information to the FDA.
Comments