USPHS Commissioned Corps

[Oxycotin]

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Does anyone have any experience with the USPHS or work as an officer now? I'm torn between the service and a civilian position. The benefits with the service look great but the pay seems low. Does anyone know how the pay is and how the promotions go? Thanks

 

[WVUPharm2007]

There are other perks. You get living expenses tax free and get to travel for free internationally as a hop-along. Also, after 20 years you get the opportunity to retire with an annual pension that is a little over half of your usual salary - after 30 years the pension increases greatly. You also get health benefits for life. I've considered it, too. Retire from the PHS at 44, then get a job in the private sector and double-dip on the income. I decided against it though.

 

[Oxycotin]

There are other perks. You get living expenses tax free and get to travel for free internationally as a hop-along. Also, after 20 years you get the opportunity to retire with an annual pension that is a little over half of your usual salary - after 30 years the pension increases greatly. You also get health benefits for life. I've considered it, too. Retire from the PHS at 44, then get a job in the private sector and double-dip on the income. I decided against it though.

Oh how come you decided against it?

 

[WVUPharm2007]

I will make more money elsewhere and still retire by that age.

 

[Oxycotin]

Oh nice. Retire with a pension and free healthcare? Which company offers that may I ask

 

[WVUPharm2007]

None that I know of. I'm hoping to become the investing/business owning type rather than the "buy a BMW and $500,000 house out of school" type.

 

[Epic]

None that I know of. I'm hoping to become the investing/business owning type rather than the "buy a BMW and $500,000 house out of school" type.

Not everyone can be like me...

 

[WVUPharm2007]

Not everyone can be like me...

That's what Babe Ruth said to Roger Marris.

 

[RogerWilco]

If you are looking at the USPHS

Most of the positions are on an Indian Reservation or in the Prison System

There are also some positions in the FDA and on Coast Guard Bases

You will start with O-3 pay. And get 30 days paid vacation per year plus federal holidays.

Retire after 20 years with 50% of your base pay and medical through government MTFs

Opportunity to advance up to O-6 base pay during your career

not a bad deal


Or you could Go NAVY

v/r

 

[Oxycotin]

If you are looking at the USPHS

Most of the positions are on an Indian Reservation or in the Prison System

There are also some positions in the FDA and on Coast Guard Bases

You will start with O-3 pay. And get 30 days paid vacation per year plus federal holidays.

Retire after 20 years with 50% of your base pay and medical through government MTFs

Opportunity to advance up to O-6 base pay during your career

not a bad deal


Or you could Go NAVY

v/r

Are you in the PHS Parsox?

 

[RogerWilco]

Navy

But if you want more info I have a buddy in the PHS working for the FDA in DC

 

[rphchase]

Does anyone have any experience with the USPHS or work as an officer now? I'm torn between the service and a civilian position. The benefits with the service look great but the pay seems low. Does anyone know how the pay is and how the promotions go? Thanks

For the last 3 years I have done nothing but relief work for PHS. I am not commission corp but I have worked at 4 different IHS sites and loved every minute of it. I have worked with corp pharmacists as well as independent contractors. There are many, many great benefits but the biggest drawback (for most people) is that most locations are somewhat rural - unless you work for the VA or DOC in larger cities. I spent time at Red Lake, MN, Crow Agency, MT, Sisseton, SD and most recently at Pine Ridge,SD. Although the base pay may be low - what you receive in benefits more than makes up for it - speaking from experience as prior service. They also offer student loan repayment. As for the most current salary I could find out for you from one of my friends. Oh yeah, there are also many opportunities for follow on training for clinical services such as anti-coag. Some facilitities also have lipid clinics etc... that are run by rph's. I liked it because it's a great mix of in-patient and clinic pharmacy. Ok, I've rambled enough - let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[sdn1977]

I've only known 1 USPHS & 1 Navy pharmacist.

The Navy guy is long, long gone - not many places in N CA for Navy positions anymore.

As Parsox mentioned, in CA the only USPHS I'm aware of is prisons and they are NOT in places you want to live! (thats just me though).

Personally, retiring with medical paid by the govt in CA is a bad deal. There are very, very few providers which will take TriCare here - which I think is the retiree provider (could be wrong here). All the retired military folks use their spouses retiree medical.

In CA, one of the best options if you want to do govt work is to do the VA. You don't have to "enlist" - basically you're a civilian working on a govt wage scale. Same benefits (vacation, retirement, etc..but better medical benefits). The pay is indeed lower than any equivalent job in the private sector in CA. But, the beauty of it is, you don't have to be a licensed CA pharmacist to work in a VA. You can retire here with a license from any state & still work a bit.

Beyond that - I'm clueless about USPHS.

 

[RogerWilco]

SDN1977 brings up a good point.

GS positions at the VA or in a military hospital/clinic have some of the same benefits as active duty

the big ones being a paid retirement
and decent vacation

might be worth checking out

I know the payscales can be disproportional to retail though 🙁
which may play a factor if you are new grad looking to pay off student loans

v/r

 

[Oxycotin]

Navy

But if you want more info I have a buddy in the PHS working for the FDA in DC

Cool. Which office does your buddy work in? I'm actually doing an internship there right now until the end of this month.

For the last 3 years I have done nothing but relief work for PHS. I am not commission corp but I have worked at 4 different IHS sites and loved every minute of it. I have worked with corp pharmacists as well as independent contractors. There are many, many great benefits but the biggest drawback (for most people) is that most locations are somewhat rural - unless you work for the VA or DOC in larger cities. I spent time at Red Lake, MN, Crow Agency, MT, Sisseton, SD and most recently at Pine Ridge,SD. Although the base pay may be low - what you receive in benefits more than makes up for it - speaking from experience as prior service. They also offer student loan repayment. As for the most current salary I could find out for you from one of my friends. Oh yeah, there are also many opportunities for follow on training for clinical services such as anti-coag. Some facilitities also have lipid clinics etc... that are run by rph's. I liked it because it's a great mix of in-patient and clinic pharmacy. Ok, I've rambled enough - let me know if you have any other questions.

I'm really glad you like it! What is it about your position at the IHS sites that you love the most? I'll admit that the rural locations is the biggest reason that's possibly turning me away from the PHS although i'd definitely be willing to go to new places if the position is right. Do you get to choose your location for the most part? Also, for non-IHS sites, are there many open positions usually for corps officers, like the VA or FDA? I went to an info session and my impression is that although you're moble and can work in many different places, there aren't many positions open outside of the IHS. I've searched USAjobs.gov for government openings and there were very few or no openings in the places i'd like to work as an officer such as the VA, FDA, NIH, etc.

I've only known 1 USPHS & 1 Navy pharmacist.

The Navy guy is long, long gone - not many places in N CA for Navy positions anymore.

As Parsox mentioned, in CA the only USPHS I'm aware of is prisons and they are NOT in places you want to live! (thats just me though).

Personally, retiring with medical paid by the govt in CA is a bad deal. There are very, very few providers which will take TriCare here - which I think is the retiree provider (could be wrong here). All the retired military folks use their spouses retiree medical.

In CA, one of the best options if you want to do govt work is to do the VA. You don't have to "enlist" - basically you're a civilian working on a govt wage scale. Same benefits (vacation, retirement, etc..but better medical benefits). The pay is indeed lower than any equivalent job in the private sector in CA. But, the beauty of it is, you don't have to be a licensed CA pharmacist to work in a VA. You can retire here with a license from any state & still work a bit.

Beyond that - I'm clueless about USPHS.

Thanks for the info SDN. Yeah i've been thinking a lot about the benefits and I was wondering what govt healthcare was like. As for the BOP, i'd be willing to work in most places unless they're truly in the middle of nowhere.

 

[RogerWilco]

He works in the area of New Drug Patents....I believe he reviews alot of the statistics provided by the drug companies when they apply for FDA approval

I will give him a call and get his email for ya

 

[rphchase]

I'm really glad you like it! What is it about your position at the IHS sites that you love the most? I'll admit that the rural locations is the biggest reason that's possibly turning me away from the PHS although i'd definitely be willing to go to new places if the position is right. Do you get to choose your location for the most part? Also, for non-IHS sites, are there many open positions usually for corps officers, like the VA or FDA? I went to an info session and my impression is that although you're moble and can work in many different places, there aren't many positions open outside of the IHS. I've searched USAjobs.gov for government openings and there were very few or no openings in the places i'd like to work as an officer such as the VA, FDA, NIH, etc.

For me it came down to not having to do the same thing all day everyday. The pharmacists rotate positions throughout the day in the outpatient pharmacy, and they alternate weeks in the inpatient pharmacy. For example: during the morning I would do screening, order entry, taking phone calls and provider interaction. Then in the afternoon I would do verification, counseling and refills. At the IHS sites the pharmacists work in a very clinically driven environment - it is very hands on as far as the decisions that are made - and the providers are more than willing to come to you for advice. You have the best of both retail and hospital. And, you don't have to deal with any 3rd party insurance crap. You are correct in that there aren't many positions outside of IHS that are corp. As far as location goes if you picked a state that you liked chances are there would be an opening at one of the IHS sites. I could make a living out of working for IHS just doing relief work because it seems as though there are always open slots that they can't fill with permanent staff. Think about working for the VA or FDA as a civil servant? You can also contract as a civilian with IHS. There are many options. What about active duty in Army or Air Force?

 

[confettiflyer]

I'm considering becoming a pharmacist for the Air Force...actually I've always been interested in joining the service (my fiance's father serves in the Navy). If anyone has any specific information about that, I'd like to hear it! I've only been on the USAF site, this thread, and know generally what to expect working for the government. If anyone has first/second hand experience, please post 😀