Report: At $686,000 Orthopedic Surgeons Earn The Highest Physician Starting Salary

DALLAS, Aug. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Orthopedic surgeons are offered the highest average starting salary among physicians at $686,000, while pediatricians are at the low end of the starting salary scale at $244,000, according to an annual report from AMN Healthcare’s Physician Solutions division (formerly known as Merritt Hawkins).

The 2024 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives, now in its 31^st year, tracks starting salaries and other incentives offered by hospitals and medical groups to physicians, nurse practitioners (NPs) and other advanced practice professionals. Specialists are offered the top starting salaries among physicians, according to the report. After orthopedic surgeons, gastroenterologists are offered the highest average starting salary at $531,000, followed by urologists at $496,000, radiologists at $495,000 and dermatologists at $486,000.

Primary care physicians are offered significantly lower starting salaries than specialists, the report indicates. Family medicine physicians are offered an average starting salary of $271,000, as are general internists, less than half that of orthopedic surgeons.

“Current physician payment models favor specialists,” said Leah Grant, president of AMN Healthcare Physician Solutions. “They perform the high revenue generating procedures on which many hospitals and medical groups depend.”

While NPs are offered lower starting salaries than physicians, salary offers to NPs are increasing, according to the report. The average starting salary offer for NPs is $164,000, up over 8% year-over-year, and up 32% from five years ago.

“NPs are in rapidly growing demand as physician shortages persist,” Grant said. “Without them, access to healthcare would be even more problematic, particularly in rural and other underserved areas.”

Signing Bonuses, Relocation and CME

In addition to starting salaries, physicians and NPs often are offered signing bonuses, relocation allowances and continuing medical education (CME) allowances. The average signing bonus for physicians tracked in the report is $31,103, while the average signing bonus for NPs is $11,037.

The average relocation allowance is $11,284 for physicians and $7,910 for NPs and other advanced practice professionals. The average CME allowance is $3,969 for physicians and $2,195 for NPs. Most physician and NP employment contracts also offer benefits like health insurance, malpractice insurance and retirement/401k plans.

More Entities Vying for Physicians and NPs

According to Grant, a growing number of organizations are seeking to recruit physicians and NPs from a limited supply of candidates. These organizations include retail clinics, urgent care centers, telehealth platforms, insurance companies and private equity firms, all of which are vying with hospitals and medical groups for talent.

“Healthcare is evolving as new market entrants seek to change how and where care is delivered,” said Grant. “More types of organizations are recruiting physicians and NPs, causing starting salaries to trend up.”  

Demand for Ob/Gyns Strong, Supply Limited

AMN Healthcare received more requests to recruit obstetricians/gynecologists in the last year than any other type of physician, with the exception of family medicine physicians, according to the report. The average starting salary offer made to Ob/Gyns is $389,000, up 6% year-over-year and up 22% from five years ago, underscoring strong demand for the specialty.

AMN Healthcare’s 2024 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives is based on a representative sample of the 2,138 search engagements the company conducted from April 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024, and includes data on starting salaries and other incentives offered by the company’s clients to physicians and advanced practice professionals nationwide. A copy of the report can be accessed at https://www.amnhealthcare.com/siteassets/amn-insights/physician/incentive-review-2024-final.pdf

About AMN Healthcare  
AMN Healthcare is the leader and innovator in total talent solutions for healthcare organizations across the United States. Through a steadfast partnership approach, we solve the most pressing workforce challenges to enable better clinical outcomes and access to care. We provide a comprehensive network of quality healthcare professionals and deliver a fully integrated and customizable suite of workforce technologies.

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