ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Kaplan Sanders, PhD; Julie Phillips, MD, MPH; Sarah Fleischer, MS; Lars E. Peterson, MD, PhD
Corresponding Author: Kaplan Sanders, PhD; Utah Tech University, Department of Accounting, Finance, and Data Analytics
Email: kaplan.sanders@utahtech.edu
DOI: 10.3122/jabfm.2023.230039R1
Keywords: Family Medicine, Family Physicians, Gender Equity, Income, Workforce
Dates: Submitted: 01-30-2023; Revised: 05-02-2023; Accepted: 05-08-2023
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PURPOSE: Family medicine incomes are often cited as a key reason for shortages of family physicians. The purpose of this study was to identify family physician income trends and to test how income varies among early-career family physicians.
METHODS: We used data from the 2016-2020 American Board of Family Medicine National Graduate Survey (NGS) collected from early-career family physicians (N=9,566; response rate = 63.9%). The NGS asked practice income, practice activities, practice site, and setting. We performed an income trend analysis and conducted multivariate regression to test for associations of personal and workplace characteristics with income.
RESULTS: Average income across the full sample of early-career family physicians (after inflation adjustments) was $224,292. Overall, income growth outpaced inflation from 2016-2020. There are significant differences in income based on personal and work characteristics, and income growth varied dramatically. Notably, female respondents reported earnings of $33,522 below those of male respondents in adjusted models. Additionally, the incomes of several groups lagged behind inflation, including those practicing geriatrics (-0.67%), employed by the Indian Health Service (-1.72%), and respondents who identified as Black or African American (-0.85%). Greatest increases in inflation-adjusted incomes were observed among those in palliative care (4.61%) and at non-federal government clinics (4.46%).
CONCLUSIONS: Though income is only one factor physicians consider in deciding where and how to work, it is concerning to see lower incomes among groups that traditionally experience shortages (e.g., geriatrics and government-associated practice sites). Differences in expected income among family physicians choosing different work may exacerbate workforce challenges.