Physicians in medical groups and other organized systems of care delivery saw a slight increase in compensation, according to annual survey data released by the American Medical Group Management Association.
In general, findings show average percentage increases in compensation in 2013 were slightly higher than in 2012, with the overall weighted average increase in 2013 being 2.9%, up from 1.6% in the previous year. Results were based on a survey conducted on behalf of the American Medical Group Management Association (AMGA) by Sullivan, Cotter and Associates, with 289 medical groups representing about 73,700 providers submitting valid survey responses. AMGA released the survey results on Aug. 20.
Individual specialties showing the biggest median total compensation increase year-over-year include gastroenterology (a 9.0% increase to $471,336), cardiac/thoracic surgery (8.2% to $569,073), emergency medicine (5.2% to $316,739), and neurology (5.1% to $268,096). Total compensation includes the total compensation of the individual provider, including base, variable, and administrative compensation, plus all voluntary salary reductions.
Four specialties saw compensation decreases during this time period, including allergy/immunology (a 1.3% decrease to $267,338), rheumatologic disease (–0.5% to $239,112), cardiology-cath lab (–0.4% to $544,733), and endocrinology (–0.2% to $233,769).
Overall, AMGA reported that 68% of specialties reported increases in compensation in 2013, with primary care specialists reporting a 3.8% increase in 2013, up from 2.8% in 2012. Other specialists saw compensation increase on average 1.8%, up from 1.6%, and surgical specialists saw an average increase of 3.0%, up from 0.5%.