stat tracker
The Latest Data on Physician Starting Salaries

Hiring a new physician is an important and expensive proposition for ophthalmology practices. To make competitive offers without going overboard, practice owners are best served if they have hard facts on starting salaries and other elements of contracts offered to employed physicians.

The Health Care Group, Inc. conducts an annual Physician Starting Salary Survey that contains such information. Data from the 2004 survey on first-year base salaries, malpractice insurance coverage and restrictive covenants for ophthalmologists appear below.

About this data: The statistics in this installment of Stat Tracker were drawn from the 2004 Physician Starting Salary Survey, which is a cooperative effort. Participating healthcare advisers, consultants and practices submit reports, and The Health Care Group, Inc. (Plymouth Meeting, Pa.) tabulates the results. All summary statistics are based on responses to the Physician Starting Salary Survey during the period January 2000 through September 2004. The complete 2004 Physician Starting Salary Survey is available online and reports data for the second and third years of employment, as well as additional data about incentive arrangements, other benefits, on-call responsibilities and co-owner arrangements. For more information about the survey, go to www.healthcaregroup.com or call Mark E. Kropiewnicki, J.D., LL.M. at (800) 473-0032.