Medscape's 2022 Physician Compensation Report: Physician Salary Rebound, but Gender and Racial Gaps Persist

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Apr 15, 2022, 06:00 ET

NEW YORK, April 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- After stagnating during the height of the pandemic, physician salaries rebounded 7% towards the end of 2021, with increases seen in primary care and all other specialties, according to the results of the Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2022: Incomes Gain, Pay Gaps Remain, released today.

As medical practices reopened and patient volume returned to pre-pandemic levels, salaries also increased to an overall average of $339,000 (up from $299,999 in 2020), a jump of more than 29% since 2015. The highest-paid physicians were plastic surgeons ($576,000), orthopedists ($557,000), and cardiologists ($490,000), while primary care physicians, pediatricians, and public health & preventive medicine specialists reported the lowest compensation, at $255,000, $244,000 and $243,000, respectively.

But pay gaps along gender and racial/ethnic lines persisted across every specialty, remaining largely unchanged since 2017. In this year's report, male physicians in primary care earned 23% more than female physicians, and male specialists earned 31% more than female specialists. The specialty pay gap narrowed slightly from 37% in 2017, which may reflect efforts by professional specialty organizations to address gender recruitment and pay inequities. Caucasian/White physicians overall earned more than Latinx/Hispanic, Asian American physicians and African American/Black physicians.

To read the full report, click here: https://www.medscape.com/slideshow/2022-compensation-overview-6015043?faf=1

The annual Medscape Physician Compensation Report is the most comprehensive and widely used physician salary survey in the U.S., assessing compensation, hours worked, time spent with patients, and what they find most rewarding -- and challenging -- about their jobs. The 2022 report surveyed 13,000 physicians across 29 specialties from October 5, 2021 to January 19, 2022.

"After an extremely difficult two years, physicians are seeing a return to more routine patient practice, and their compensation increases are evidence of that," said Leslie Kane, MA, Senior Director, Medscape Business of Medicine. "That said, we're seeing little progress on pay equity – although women have made inroads into many of the higher-earning specialties--, and physicians continue to raise the issue of workload and administrative demands. " "We are encouraged to see continued efforts by the medical community.

Additional Report Highlights:

Otolaryngologists, gastroenterologists, and dermatologists saw the largest salary increases, between 11% and 13%. Public health and preventative medicine specialists, oncologists, and critical care physicians saw the lowest increases, from 1% to 3%. Yet, public health specialists ranked highest in feeling adequately compensated as compared with other specialties.
Despite an overall increase, one in five physicians (21%) reported that their salaries fell in 2021, with 70% citing the impact of pandemic-related office closures and loss of patient volume.
About one in four physicians (25%) feel competition from nurse practitioners (NPs), physician assistants (PAs), naturopaths, and other non-physician practitioners; more than half use NPs in their practice.
As in previous reports, nearly one in four physicians (23%) cited too many rules and regulations as the most challenging aspect of patient practice and 15% pointed to difficult patients and long hours.

Medscape Survey Methods:

The 2022 Medscape Physician Compensation Report was completed by 13,064 Medscape member physicians representing more than 29 specialty areas, currently practicing in the U.S. Participants were invited to respond to an online survey. The margin of error for the survey was +/- 0.86% at a 95% confidence level using a point estimate of 50%. The sampling error for full-time respondents is +/- 0.97%.

About Medscape

Medscape is the leading source of clinical news, health information, and point-of-care tools for healthcare professionals. Medscape offers specialists, primary care doctors, and other health professionals the most robust and integrated medical information and educational tools. Medscape Education (medscape.org) is the leading destination for continuous professional development, consisting of more than 30 specialty-focused destinations offering thousands of free C.M.E. and C.E. courses and other educational programs for doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.

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SOURCE Medscape