Pay for military residents and docs?

[cincityghost]

I'm curious as to what sort of salary i can get as a resident in military vs civilian. Will i make more cash in a military or geographically comparable civilian residency? I'm in the HPSP program. I've looked through the officer pay charts, and it doesnt seem very impressing compared to civilian programs. Is there special pay for the residents and docs that boost that up? I was lead to believe by the fine army peoples that trained me at fort sam houston that us strapping young doctors-to-be would take more money away from a military residency. Were they full of it or not? Also, will i break a hundred G's after residency as a military doc? I was just thinking it would be nice to get those undergrad loans paid off some day. Anyway, any current or past military residents and/or docs, please feel free to share any digits that came or are coming your way.

thanks ahead of time

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[orbitsurgMD]

I'm curious as to what sort of salary i can get as a resident in military vs civilian.

See the chart. You will get O-3, less than 2 years to start unless you have prior service, which by the general train of your questions it seems you do not. BAS is fixed as is BAQ. VHA varies by location. Bonuses are paid to GMOs and to post-residency physicians. They are both fixed, like ASP and board-certified bonuses, and also variable, depending on your specialty and the length of time you agree to extend on active duty. As a GMO, you get ASP, but not board certiification pay or VSP (or whatever it is called now).

Will i make more cash in a military or geographically comparable civilian residency?

More in military as a resident.

I'm in the HPSP program. I've looked through the officer pay charts, and it doesnt seem very impressing compared to civilian programs.

Base pay stinks. Total pay includes the non-taxable allowances and any applicable bonuses. (Sorry, but I think you still lose your ASP while in residency.) Retirement pay is calculated from base pay only, not any of your allowances or bonus pay.

Is there special pay for the residents and docs that boost that up?

As above for graduated attendings, as a resident, you got nothing coming.

I was lead to believe by the fine army peoples that trained me at fort sam houston that us strapping young doctors-to-be would take more money away from a military residency. Were they full of it or not?

Clarify. I don't know what you are referring to here.

Also, will i break a hundred G's after residency as a military doc?

Probably. By how much will depend on your medical specialty.

I was just thinking it would be nice to get those undergrad loans paid off some day.

Very do-able with a little budgeting and discipline in spending. I was able to pay off all mine early. So were most of my colleagues, some of whom owed much more.

Anyway, any current or past military residents and/or docs, please feel free to share any digits that came or are coming your way.

thanks ahead of time

It is what it is.

 

[Mirror Form]

the military pays it's residents well. First: your BAH and BAS (which are a lot) are not taxable. Second, you can make texas your home of record => no state taxes! Third, the overall pay is just higher.

I'm a pgy-2 resident with a total of 5 years toward my payscale. My salary comes out to 5.6k/month AFTER taxes. And I'll be getting a small raise raise in january (the military annual 3% thing). And then I'll get another raise next june when I hit 6 years.

 

[Mirror Form]

As a GMO, you get ASP, but not board certiification pay or VSP (or whatever it is called now).

Residents get VSP.

 

[cincityghost]

thank you gents for your replies.

what i meant was pretty much what i said. I recall in OBC a few yrs ago that someone mentioned we would make more in military residency than civilian. I just hadn't heard it directly from anyone to verify. While looking in a residency catalogue for FP, I noticed the pay listed as 27K for one or two of the military programs. I was like " ." I don't know where those figures came from, but that's what I saw. Its relieving to know that as a resident I wont be screwed, mislead, and stuck with the lowest pay in the country. Anyway, thanks again for cluing me in.

peace

 

[NavyFP]

the military pays it's residents well. First: your BAH and BAS (which are a lot) are not taxable. Second, you can make texas your home of record => no state taxes! Third, the overall pay is just higher.

I'm a pgy-2 resident with a total of 5 years toward my payscale. My salary comes out to 5.6k/month AFTER taxes. And I'll be getting a small raise raise in january (the military annual 3% thing). And then I'll get another raise next june when I hit 6 years.

You will get a nice one in June. VSP will go up to $1K. My VSP is on the doward trend.

 

[The White Coat Investor]

I make 115K as a brand new EM attending without prior service. Of course, the Air Force is currently withholding 26K of that for unknown reasons. See my other thread for details.

The average civilian EP made 225K in 2004 and many of my classmates in residency signed for around 250K.

As a resident, I made 37-44K in a civilian residency.

If I were a brand new intern in a military residency today where I live I would make 60K.

The numbers change around a bit depending on various factors but this gives you the main points.

 

[paradude]

And I'll be getting a small raise raise in january (the military annual 3% thing).

2.2% this year

 

[cincityghost]

thanks again for your replies guys.

I really appreciate the numbers Desperado, esp since I'm interested in EM.

Another question I have is: does pay increase much while on a tour of duty in a hostile environment like Iraq?

thanks

 

[Mirror Form]

I make 115K as a brand new EM attending without prior service. Of course, the Air Force is currently withholding 26K of that for unknown reasons. See my other thread for details.

The average civilian EP made 225K in 2004 and many of my classmates in residency signed for around 250K.

As a resident, I made 37-44K in a civilian residency.

If I were a brand new intern in a military residency today where I live I would make 60K.

The numbers change around a bit depending on various factors but this gives you the main points.

Although you'll still make significantly less than a civilian EM doc, keep in mind that desperado's pay is under-representing most attending's pay. That's b/c most attendings have at least 3 or 4 years in service (you get a fairly significant raise after the first 2 years, and another okay one at 4 years).

Also, depending on where your stationed, you'll likely have a good chunk of your pay be in BAH, and hence non-taxable. Plus you can dodge state taxes too, which goes a long way in many states.

 

[Mirror Form]

You will get a nice one in June. VSP will go up to $1K. My VSP is on the doward trend.

I hope so, but I'm not so sure what the regs are in regard to VSP. I think it only goes up to 1k after 6 years as a doctor. Since four of my years are from before becoming a physician, they may not count toward vsp.

 

[i want out]

thanks again for your replies guys.

I really appreciate the numbers Desperado, esp since I'm interested in EM.

Another question I have is: does pay increase much while on a tour of duty in a hostile environment like Iraq?

thanks

Yes, pay does increase while in hostile fire zone, but the nontaxable portion maximum, is equivalent to what an the highest ranking enlisted in the military can make.

You also get Family seperation allowanc (FSA) which is currently about $250/month
Hostile fire pay which is another $250 a month

then the Tax free portion made my increase total about $1000 a month during my recent tour as a second tour GMO in a hostile fire zone.

Keep in mind, though your ASP the $15,000 a year they give you for being a doc not in training, is still completely taxable, and since its taxed as a bonus, you really only see about $11,000 of it.

i want out

 

[NavyFP]

I hope so, but I'm not so sure what the regs are in regard to VSP. I think it only goes up to 1k after 6 years as a doctor. Since four of my years are from before becoming a physician, they may not count toward vsp.

You're right, it has to be 6 as a doc.

 

[The White Coat Investor]

thanks again for your replies guys.

I really appreciate the numbers Desperado, esp since I'm interested in EM.

Another question I have is: does pay increase much while on a tour of duty in a hostile environment like Iraq?

thanks

It increases like $200 a month. But there are a few unique tax advantaged savings programs available when you're deployed (all your pay is tax free while you're deployed) so in reality it is probably something like an extra $1000 a month.