(TIMELY!) Residency Employment Question- for-profit or non-profit?

[puppynina]

Hi all,

This may be a shot in the dark, but wanted to reach out to whomever could tell me a bit about the topic of resident employment, by MONDAY April 15th, due to some financial deadlines I'm facing. I've tried to answer these questions via my school's GME department and financial aid department but have had no clear answers. So thought I'd throw it out to the reliable studentdoctor community.

Specifically, my questions are:
1. Are most major US medical schools, hospitals, and health systems 501(c)(3)s? All my research so far seems to indicate yes.
2. Do you know if medical residents are *directly* employed by the above entities while in training (ie not some other filler entity/organization)? What % of residents do you estimate are? 1%? 10% 50%? 90%? Just a rough sense would help guide me.
3. Are residents in training employed by organizations/entities not described above? If so what are these entities, and what % of residents do you estimate are employed by these other entities?
4. ***Any specific examples of residencies where employer is technically not a non-profit, but all work is done at non-profit hospital, would be especially HELPFUL****

I ask all this because part of some financial aid I'm eligible for would require I be directly employed by a 501(c)(3) upon graduating from medical school.

Thank you! 🙂

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[trug07]

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

In answer to question #1, as far as I know, ALL LCME accredited medical schools are not for profit. MOST hospitals are not for profit, and nearly all academic medical centers are not for profit. In regards to question #2, I think that most residents are employed either by the hospital or health system, but in any case that employer would be not-for-profit unless the parent hospital/health system is for profit. I think that are some entities that run residency programs across several hospitals and health systems (try Grand Rapids Medical Education Partners) but I don't think you'd have a problem with those.

There are, however, a select group of university affiliated academic hospitals that are owned by for-profit companies (GW University Hospital, Drexel, Wayne State, Tulane) and they don't go out of their way to advertise this in the residency program materials.

I don't think it would be to difficult to find out about individual programs before an interview or ask about at the interview if the information is difficult to find. I don't think you'll have much of a problem.

Hope that helps.

 

[VenusinFurs]

http://www.ahadataviewer.com/

Click on "get a free report."

YW.

 

[Raryn]

100% of LCME-accredited medical schools and all but one current DO school are non-profit, though the LCME is thinking of getting rid of the requirement for future schools (awful idea).

Definitely >90%, probably >95% of residency programs fall under a 503(c)(1).

Roughly 80% of hospitals overall are the same.

 

[puppynina]

Thanks everyone this is really helpful!! 🙂

Raryn, when you say "Definitely >90%, probably >95% of residency programs fall under a 503(c)(1)", is that the same as saying they are directly employed by the 501(c)(3) (ie that is who is on their W9/paycheck)? That's the key issue for my financial aid.

***Also, if anyone has any specific examples of residencies where there is a mixed profit/non-profit situation (meaning, employer is technically not a non-profit, but all work is done at non-profit hospital) that would be ESPECIALLY HELPFUL****

Thanks!

 

[IlDestriero]

If you do an unaccredited or alternate pathway fellowship with a PP group, that probably wouldn't qualify.

 

[Raryn]

Raryn, when you say "Definitely >90%, probably >95% of residency programs fall under a 503(c)(1)", is that the same as saying they are directly employed by the 501(c)(3) (ie that is who is on their W9/paycheck)? That's the key issue for my financial aid.

As far as I know, yes. This is actually a big deal for a lot of people, as you can only qualify for PSLF if you're employed by a 501(c)(3), and per our financial aid office, the vast, vast majority of residency programs count.

 

[BADMD]

Many are, but certainly not all. Moreover, there are some complex affiliation arrangements. If you must be employed by a non-profit during residency, BEFORE you apply, you need to ask GME from each program about their status.

There are complex and not readily apparent relationships. For example, it was mentioned above about Wayne State. Wayne State is not for profit. It has academic affiliations with several hospital systems, at least one of which is for profit. The residents for each program are employed by the hospital. So the faculty is all employed by a non-profit, however the residents may not be.

The only way to be sure is to ask the GME office of the specific program.