Health Care Reform Bill

[95439]

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I figure I'd just post this here...does anyone know what effect the Health Reform Bill will have on doctor's salaries? One doc I worked with told me to expect a 25% decrease in salary by the year 2011. I'm not greedy, but I'm over 200k in debt, and would like to assume that the many years of grueling, hard work that I've put in will not be met with financial uncertainty. I did not go into medicine for the money, but unfortunately, we need money to live. If anyone has an EDUCATED opinion of this, I'd like to hear it.

Thanks as always..

 

[PhakeDoc]

Your best bet for answers due to larger amount of traffic is on the General Residency or Lounge areas of SDN.

 

[cezzz]

it's quite interesting that the only top-earning profession that's truly necessary is probably the only top-earning profession that's getting salary caps . 200k is twice as much the salary as someone who completes their masters, and you get that in 4 years. Also most physicians earn much more than that, so even if salary does go down, the salary is still decent. You don't truly love med unless you would do it without huge sums of money.

 

[typhoonegator]

I can't pay $300,000 in student loans with the love of my profession. I also shouldn't be asked to work for far less than my true worth just to prove that I like my job. The opportunity-cost of four years of medical school and seven years of residency/fellowship has a definable market value and should not go unrealized. I'd like for my academic and career success to benefit my family -- it's not like we all want millions of dollars to buy yachts and mansions in the Hamptons.

 

[womp]

You don't truly love med unless you would do it without huge sums of money.

Wait until you only make as much as nurse practitioners and pharmacists, the ones who couldn't break 25 on the MCAT.

Pharmacists make $50 an hour, they work just 40 hours a week and no residency. That's already pretty close to what primary care physicians make on an hourly basis after residency.

 

[neurologist]

I also shouldn't be asked to work for far less than my true worth

Your "true worth" (at least in the economic sense) is what the market is willing to pay you, not what you think you should be paid or think you're worth.

If the market, via it's various economic and governmental apparati, decides we're worth half as much as we make now, we're pretty much screwed and can either take it or move on to something else.

Of course, one could argue that we don't really have a true free market for health care, but I'm not so sure that would work out in favor of physicians either -- has sort of always struck me as one of those "be careful what you wish for" scenarios.

 

[95439]

it's quite interesting that the only top-earning profession that's truly necessary is probably the only top-earning profession that's getting salary caps . 200k is twice as much the salary as someone who completes their masters, and you get that in 4 years. Also most physicians earn much more than that, so even if salary does go down, the salary is still decent. You don't truly love med unless you would do it without huge sums of money.

I don't even know what you're trying to say here....

 

[95439]

I can't pay $300,000 in student loans with the love of my profession. I also shouldn't be asked to work for far less than my true worth just to prove that I like my job. The opportunity-cost of four years of medical school and seven years of residency/fellowship has a definable market value and should not go unrealized. I'd like for my academic and career success to benefit my family -- it's not like we all want millions of dollars to buy yachts and mansions in the Hamptons.

Dude, you're my frigging hero. It's good to hear someone intelligent with the same opinion. 👍

 

[95439]

Your "true worth" (at least in the economic sense) is what the market is willing to pay you, not what you think you should be paid or think you're worth.

If the market, via it's various economic and governmental apparati, decides we're worth half as much as we make now, we're pretty much screwed and can either take it or move on to something else.

I respectfully disagree....we don't have to 'take it or move on to something else'. We can fight. If we're organized and agree that doctors are not the problem with medicine, as many seem to think.

 

[spiderbear]

I'd rather see government subsidies for medical school so we don't HAVE to make ridiculous salaries. Doctor's salaries are driven by med school costs and insurance..both of which I think are at the root of inaffordable healthcare.

I don't think most doctors should be making more than $200,000 after you take these inflated costs into account. Salaries are only a tiny percentage of overall healthcare costs..and that's insane to me. $400k for a specialist making up only 11% of total cost of service? That's ridiculous.