Highest paid Physician Specialties

Although experts had predicted numbers would hold steady or even drop for physicians in 2008, revenue and compensation increased slightly for radiologists last year, keeping in line with most specialties, according to an annual salary survey.

These findings are part of the American Medical Group Association (AMGA) 2009 Medical Compensation and Financial Survey sent to 2,700 medical groups in February 2009. Survey administrator RSM McGladrey received responses from 231 medical groups representing 44,200 providers.

According to the survey, salaries for interventional radiologists increased by 3.19 percent in 2008—down from the 5.28 percent increase that subspecialty posted in 2007. The median salary for an interventional radiologist was $478,000, remaining the second highest among 30 specialties included in the AMGA survey.

With a median salary of $438,115, diagnostic radiologists’ compensation increased by 4.10 percent in 2008, jumping from the 1.44 percent increase in 2007. Diagnostic radiologists scored the fifth highest annual compensation among the specialties surveyed.

Cardiac/thoracic surgeons were the highest paid specialty, with a median salary of $507,143, for a 1.98 percent increase. Specialties with the highest compensation increases from 2007 to 2008 were ophthalmology at 6.58 percent, otolaryngology at 8.63 percent, pathology at 11.02 percent and urgent care at 7.33 percent, according to the survey.

“We had projected that collected charges would be flat or even decrease in many specialties due to the changes in reimbursement from Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS),” according to Brad Vaudrey, M.B.A., a director with RSM McGladrey’s Health Care Consulting Group. “But in terms of the physician compensation increase, there was an average increase of approximately 3.6 percent across all specialties.”

The marginal fluctuation in compensation for most specialties is tied to the current economic climate and push to reform healthcare, according to Donald W. Fisher, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer of AMGA. “The modest increases this year reflect the negative impact of declining reimbursements, competition for specialists, the cost of new technology and other factors impacting practice revenues in most parts of the country,” said Dr. Fisher.

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