Dive Brief:
- While 64% of physicians overall would choose medicine as a career again, only 25% of internists and 32% of family docs would choose primary care again, according to Medscape's 2015 Physician Compensation Report.
- Primary care physicians and specialists both saw modest compensation increases in 2015. The average compensation for specialists is $284,000, and $195,000 for PCPs. Sixty-three percent of physicians report being employed, compared to 32% in private practice.
- Male physicians continue to earn more than their female counterparts, regardless of practice setting—$284,000 to $215,000. The percentage gap has decreased slightly, from 28% in 2011 to 24% in 2015. The data examined full-time physicians only, but did not adjust for hours worked.
Dive Insight:
Things weren't all bad for family physicians: As a group, they earned 10% more this year than last year, although whether that is enough to ease the impact of a primary care shortage remains to be seen.
The docs that saw the biggest increases were infectious disease physicians, whose compensation rose by 22%. Not a huge surprise, given the Ebola and measles outbreaks.
For employed physicians, the survey counted salary, bonus and profit-sharing contributions. For partners, it included earnings after taxes and deductible business expenses but before income tax.