End-of-year Tax Tips for Physicians

Some of these tips relate solely to your personal tax return, some pertain to physicians who own their practice and thus file a corporate return, and some could apply to either personal or corporate returns.

Here are some tips, "P" refers to personal returns and "B" refers to business:

1. Donate More to Your Hospital, Medical Research Charities, or Other Qualified Organizations (P, B)

2. Defer, Defer, Defer (P, B)

3. Set Aside More for Retirement (P, B)

4. Sell Stocks That Are Losers! (P)

5. Take a Business Trip for Continuing Education or to Broaden Your Clinical Horizons (P, B)

6. Add Up Any Job-Hunting Costs (P, B)

7. Buy More Business or Medical Equipment (B)

Some of these advantages may go away for 2012, now is the time to start taking advantage of any breaks for 2011 returns.

Read the full article in MedScape, or click here:

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/752793

Physician Compensation Update

In most specialties physicians are seeing an increase in compensation from last year. According to MGMA data the specialties experiencing the most dramatic increases were dermatology, emergency medicine, neurology, orthopedic surgery, and pulmonary medicine. The few specialties experiencing a decline were invasive cardiology, urology, and ophthalmology.

Experts say the big picture will most likely cause physician compensation to flatten, but the ever-rising demand for services should have an upside offsetting effect.

Hospitals and medical groups are also becoming more open-minded in their employment offers, trying to stay competitive not only from a salary stand-point but also offering enticing benefit packages, relocation, paid vacation and CMEs, and other incentives to create a big-picture compensation package.


Read the full article in the New England Journal of Medicine, or click here:
http://www.nejmcareercenter.org/article/89/physician-compensation-update-it-s-a-mixed-picture/

Changing Career Path: From Clinical to non-Clinical

For a variety of reasons some physicians seek to switch their clinical career to a non-clinical position. However once they make that change it is very difficult to shift back to even a limited clinical practice, so it is important if you are considering making this change to take all factors in to account. After more than 2 years of a non-clinical position, it is very difficult to switch back to a clinical career.

While making the transition the focus doesn't have to have a dramatic stop to clinical work, it can be a slow decrease over time of a less clinically focused practice. Many physicians continue to maintain their state licenses and also up to date CME requirements to keep a possibility of more clinical work in the future.

The switch to a non-clinical position is very desireable to many phsyicians both as a retirement alternative as well as a research outlet for younger physicians. However the consequences are severe if the decision is based on short-term objectives, it is crucial to be certain you are ready to make the switch prior to completely transitioning out of a clinical position.

Read the full article in American Medical News, or click here:
http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2011/11/07/bisa1107.htm

The Art of Negotiating Physician Employment Agreements

Negotiating an employment contract prior to starting a new physician practice opportunity is paramount in ensuring a mutually beneficial long-term relationship with both the physician and the hospital. This is the only opportunity both parties have to ensure their respective needs are being met.

Whether you're the head of a medical practice inviting an experienced physician to join the group, or a resident contemplating a Letter of Intent, fair and effective negotiations are crucial to establishing a long-term working relationship.

Forethought, preparation, and the ability to listen are essential to success. Often times by the time most physicians realize that the terms of their Agreement are less than propitious it is usually too late. Most disputes between physicians and employers resulting in termination aren't related to medical competence. More often than not, physicians claim that their employers failed to inform them of, or misrepresented, working conditions, patient workload, call responsibilities, partnership potential, or the prospects for increased compensation.

During the negotiation process sometimes physicians become blindsided for lack of preparation and the failure to rank priorities effectively. It is important to consider a personal balance of long-term priorities over the course of your career including location, family, community amenities, and compensation.

Read the full article in Physicians News, or click here:
http://www.physiciansnews.com/2011/11/07/the-art-of-negotiating-physician-employment-agreements/

Quality Incentives Become Bigger Factor in Physician Compensation

With the increase of employed physicians and hospital employed positions, hospitals are increasing their flexibility to offer multiple types of incentives in addition to salaries.

According to a recent study from the Hay Group, "2011 Physician Compensation Survey," 64% of health care organizations offer an annual incentive plan to physicians. Incentives in addition to salary vary in their scope and are sometimes specialty specific but are generally based on either volume based incentives or quality based bonuses.

Quality and patient satisfaction, which public and private insurers are pushing as an incentive over productivity, were key factors in determining incentive pay.

Read the full article in American Medical News, or click here:
http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2011/10/24/bisf1027.htm

Physicians to Receive Smaller Raises in 2012

Physicians in all specialties (including primary care) can expect to see smaller compensation increases in 2012 compared to 2011, but those in group practices won't be hit quite as hard, according to Hay Group's 2011 Physician Compensation Survey released this week.

In particular, the survey predicts physicians across all organizations to get pay increases of 2.5% next year, down from actual increases of 2.7% average in 2011. Physicians working in group practices, while also getting less than last year, are expected to earn slightly higher pay increases of 3.2% in 2012 versus 2.5% for those working in hospital-based settings.

According to the survey, physicians' pay increases, from best to worst, are predicted for 2012 as follows:

Group-based specialist--4.5 percent
Group-based primary care--3.3 percent
Group-based overall--3.2 percent
Hospital-based primary care--2.9 percent
Hospital-based overall--2.5 percent
Hospital-based specialist--2.4 percent

In addition, researchers found that annual incentive plans for physicians were less common in 2011 (64%) than they were in 2010 (69%). Amongst organizations that did pay incentives, amounts continued to be determined based on quality and patient satisfaction.

Read the press release from the Hay Group at Fierce Practice Management by clicking here: http://www.fiercepracticemanagement.com/press_releases/physician-pay-increases-decline-2012-hay-group-study-finds-0?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal

Laws to Consider in Hospital-Physician Co-Management Agreements

One alternative some physicians are finding to hospital employment is a co-management arrangement between existing physician practices and hospitals.

Driven by changing payment arrangements, including Shared Savings through accountable care organizations and bundled payment models, many organizations are partnering through the alternative co-management model.

The hospital and members of the physician practice typically set up a jointly owned company to manage a service line, according to an article by law firm Akerman Senterfitt, LLP, released last week. The management company and the hospital sign a written agreement about specific job tasks and goals, as well as compensation.

However, the agreement comes with some careful considerations, in which it must follow healthcare statutes and regulations. The article suggests the following laws to consider while making this type of arrangement:

-The Stark Law is aimed at preventing a physician from making patient referrals to organizations in which he or she has a financial relationship. However, there is an exception to the rule if the hospital's compensation to the management company is steady and doesn't vary with patient volume or referrals, according to the article.

-The Anti-kickback Statute is aimed at prohibiting payment for referrals for reimbursable services. If the hospital offers the medical staff member an opportunity for ownership interest in the management company, it may violate the Anti-kickback Statute.

-The Civil Monetary Penalties Statute prohibits a hospital from paying a physician to cut services to patients who are entitled under federal benefits. Therefore, be careful that efforts to meet quality benchmarks do not violate the statute.

In the changing climate for healthcare it is more important than ever for both hospitals and physicians to be open-minded when considering employment models or other alternatives to increase the quality of patient care and to benefit both parties, the physicians and the hospital networks.

Read the full article from law firm Akerman Senterfitt, LLP by clicking here:
http://www.jdsupra.com/post/documentViewer.aspx?fid=cc4b1bfa-e188-4047-802d-12dc4b248f07

5 Current Trends in Physician Salaries

With the current trend heading towards more hospital employment for physicians, what does this mean for physician's salaries? Hospital employment typically provides more stability in an uncertain market, however how will this trend affect the physician's salaries and compensation packages?

SullivanCotter and Associates' 2011 Physician Compensation and Productivity Survey recently gathered data from more than 60,000 physicians, residents, mid-level providers and medical group executives.

According to the survey, here are 5 trends consistent with today's physician salaries and starting compensation packages:

1. Economics don't support significant increases in physician salary.
2. On-call pay is rising.
3. Different pay models are forming based on physician.
4. Sign-on bonuses favor specialists.
5. Relocation packages are increasing.

With these uncertain economic times and also the healthcare compensation industry heading for significant changes it is more important than ever to negotiate your starting compensation package based on your long term goals; not only the salary but also location, quality of life, long-term advancement potential, and running your personal practice the way you trained for and envisioned.

Read the full article in Becker's Hospital Review, or click here:
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/compensation-issues/where-are-physician-salaries-heading-5-current-trends.html

25 Statistics on Physician Salary and Compensation

This is an interesting article from Becker's Hospital Review, they have compiled 25 statistics across various specialties on physician compensation.

In all specialties there are huge variables in physician compensation: geographical areas, practice model, bonus structure, and call just being a few of many different factors.

During contract negotiations we can use compensation data as a benchmark, but there is no scientific method for determining what a fair market salary can be for any physician specialty. It is important to consider not only income but also other motivating factors that will make your job your ideal physician position, i.e. quality of life, location, benefits, security, marketing, and stability just to name a few.


Read the full article in Becker's Hospital Review, or click here:
http://www.beckershospitalreview.com/compensation-issues/25-statistics-on-physician-salary-and-compensation.html

The Business of Physician Recruitment

Currently there are many pending changes that will affect the healthcare industry, both from the perspectives of patients and physicians themselves with doubts of Medicare reimbursement, government intervention, and of course the state of the economy.

The existing physician shortage will only increase with the continued retirement of baby boomers and the changes in availability of insured patients. Now it is more important than ever for all parties seeking physicians to be competitive and open-minded in physician recruitment.

It is important for private practices, hospitals, and even academic facilities to be flexible in creating compensation packages and attracting potential candidates. Not only a competitive salary and benefit package, but also other incentives that appeal to a physician's quality of life such as ownership, shared call, vacation days, and other big-picture factors that contribute to the quality of an employment contract.

According to the “2009 Physician Retention Survey,” conducted by the American Medical Group Association and Cejka Search, there are some ways in addition to making income packages more attractive to appeal to physician candidates.

With the uncertain times ahead of us in the healthcare industry stability and incentives are more important than ever to attract top talent.


Read the full article in MDNews.com, or click here:
http://www.mdnews.com/news/2011_08/national_aug11_the-business-%E2%80%A8of-physician-recruitment