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Don’t Give up Medical Practice; Just Yet!
Dr. David Edward Marcinko; MBA, CMP™
[Publisher-in-Chief]
By now, all physicians, medical practitioners, nurses and healthcare executives know that in 2006 the Medicare Trustees Report projected a 4.7% reduction in physician reimbursement for 2007, and 37% in cumulative cuts over the next nine years.
It also noted that each year in the next decade will feature a 5% cut in doctors’ pay, while physician costs will increase 2% annually www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/category/16221.html
The Bush administration also called for $36 billion in Medicare reductions over five years, in 2008, and advocated pay-for-performance [P4P] reimbursement metered against predetermined quality standards.
Alarming Trends
As regular readers and subscribers to the Executive-Post realize, the direct results on physician compensation are predictable, but other trends may be even more alarming.
For example, medical student debt burdens (averaging $100,000-$250,000) are economically devastating.
In FY 2000, the federal Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) program squeezed significant repayment settlements from its Top 3 deadbeat doctor debtors, and excluded 303 practitioners from Medicare and other federal/state programs; even more occurred thru 2001-07.
And, the flight of doctors out of states like California and Massachusetts; and/or taking early retirement, is particularly noteworthy.
“Don’t Give Up”
Dr. Regina E. Herzlinger, the Nancy R. McPherson professor of business administration and chair at Harvard Business School, and mother of a physician-daughter, opines that there is little wonder that some physicians become depressed and want to give up their careers entirely when pondering the future of medicine, managed care and related compensation issues.
Nevertheless, Herzlinger implores in her classic book, Market Driven Healthcare, “don’t give up practice, yet.”
Pragmatically, the future is bright and offers great opportunity to early adaptors who have the foresight to change medicine for the better and be handsomely compensated, too!
But, physicians’ inability to deal with competitive market forces – and HIT – is well known and many are loath to deal with them.
Assessment
One way is to seek additional management education through a traditional Master’s Degree in Business Administration (MBA), or use an online distance-education resource like www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com And, tuition, textbooks and fees may be tax deductible.
In this way, doctors may hope to maintain their place as salary and compensation leaders in the U.S. labor force.
Another way is to read, post, and comment, opine and subscribe to in the Executive-Post. Make it your professional health economics social network-of-choice.
Conclusion
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Will you stay the course, or retire from medical practice early?
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Will you re-educate and re-engineer; or just give up on medicine?
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Is medicine a viable career option for your children, or grand-children?
Please opine. Your comments are appreciated.
Related Information Sources:
Practice Management: http://www.springerpub.com/prod.aspx?prod_id=23759
Physician Financial Planning: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/0763745790
Medical Risk Management: http://www.jbpub.com/catalog/9780763733421
Healthcare Organizations: www.HealthcareFinancials.com
Health Administration Terms: www.HealthDictionarySeries.com
Physician Advisors: www.CertifiedMedicalPlanner.com
Speaker: If you need a moderator or speaker for an upcoming event, Dr. David E. Marcinko; MBA – Publisher-in-Chief of the Executive-Post – is available for seminar or speaking engagements. Contact him at: MarcinkoAdvisors@msn.com or Bio: http://www.stpub.com/pubs/authors/MARCINKO.htm
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Filed under: Career Development, Practice Management | Tagged: Career Development |
The Leading Business Education Network for Doctors, Financial Advisors and Health Industry Consultants 
Answering your questions:
1) Yes, I will stay.
2) I will re-educate.
3) Yes; I dream about it.
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More on Salary Trends
For salaries of military doctors, use the Navy’s Pay Calculator
https://staynavytools.bol.navy.mil/PCC/?B3=Launch+Calculator
For the salaries of civilian residents, take an average of several hospitals’ pay tables for post-graduate medical education.
For the salaries of civilian doctors, use information provided by Washington University’s
Residency Web
http://residency.wustl.edu/medadmin/resweb.nsf/L/212DEF64C36D7FA886256F8F0072F0B0?OpenDocument
Staff Reporters
Medical Executive-Post
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Dr. Marcinko,
Do you have any information on the average salaries of Emergency Room Physicians? I am doing some research on this sector. Any help or direction you could give would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
Christy Lodwick, MHA
Impact Health Care Solutions
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Chrsity,
You may begin your info search by contacting the American College of Emergency Room Physicians. They have been most complimentary of our work.
Link: http://certifiedmedicalplanner.com/MDs.aspx
Best.
Ann Miller; RN, MHA
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Reimbursement Update,
Legislation enacted in July 2008 reversed a 10.6% cut – while stating in January 2009 that a 1.1% increase would replace same – that would have gone into effect if lawmakers had not acted.
-Ann
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These specialties enjoyed the biggest jump in compensation from a year earlier: neurology, non-invasive cardiology, anesthesiology, emergency medicine and internal medicine.
Source: http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2009/06/17/how-much-do-rookie-doctors-make-the-latest-scorecard/
Remington
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Is it true that in 1952 the average doctor earned about 2.5 times more than the average worker; and by 1992 the differential was six times more?
Janet
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Regina Finally Resigns
My formerly favorite Harvard Business School professor [except for Mike Porter], and promoter of HSAs, is back in the news. She finally resigned from Wellcare.
http://www.thehealthcareblog.com/the_health_care_blog/2010/04/reg-strikes-back-apparently-wellcare-were-a-bunch-of-crooks-after-all-maybe.html#comments
I wonder how her MD daughter feels? And, to think I mentioned her in the first and second editions of my book. But – not the upcoming third edition.
Dr. David Edward Marcinko
[Editor-in-Chief]
http://www.BusinessofMedicalPractice.com
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Pay-for-Performance Initiatives
The concept of pay-for-performance (P4P) is [still] an unproven trend, according to the Congressional Research Service, an arm of the Library of Congress.
Initial studies suggest that pay-for-performance programs might change performance on quality measures that are used for the basis of bonus payments. Claims that P4P programs are cost saving in the long run are largely speculative, however, since determining whether a certain healthcare practice produces good results usually requires controlled studies rarely possible for a social policy.
Moreover, physician pay is contingent on them believing that goals are fair, measures appropriate, performance accurately tallied, and incentives worthwhile.
Source: Gregory O. Ginn PhD, MBA, CPA, MEd
http://www.HealthcareFinancials.com
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Forbes Rates the “Worst Paying Jobs for Doctors”
Forbes magazine counted down the “Worst Paying Jobs for Doctors” this week, and for many physicians in training the numbers are disquieting.
http://www.physiciansmoneydigest.com/your-money/Forbes-Rates-the-Worst-Paying-Jobs-for-Doctors
The No. 1 worst-paying doctor job? No surprise here: Family practice, where physicians earned an average of $175,000 last year, according to Merritt Hawkins & Associates’ 2010 Review of Physician Recruiting Incentives. Indeed, primary care physicians earn the lowest salary of all doctors.
Pediatricians earned an average of $180,000, while family practitioners (including obstetrics) made $200,000, the Merritt Hawkins data show. Compare that to an orthopedic surgeon ($519,000) or a urologist ($400,000).
Hope Hetico RN MHA
[Managing Editor]
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More Megatrends -OR- Where healthcare is headed
Joel Sauer, vice president of consulting at MedAxiom Consulting, travels to healthcare organizations throughout North America, guiding them on how the changes in the healthcare environment will affect their ability to serve patients, while remaining profitable.
http://www.physbiztech.com/best-practices/business/megatrends-where-healthcare-headed?email=MARCINKOADVISORS@MSN.COM&GroupID=116654
Here, he shares eight overarching considerations he believes will direct the nature of healthcare.
Luther
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