Urgent Care Physicians See Demand—and Salaries—Skyrocket

The laws of supply-and-demand have taken a liking to physicians just entering the work force—and the bounty seems especially rich in urgent care. We told you recently that physician shortages have some states offering incentives to draw newly minted docs to their neighborhoods. Now the 2016 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives reveals that “starting salaries for both primary care and specialist physicians spiked in the last 12 months.” Of particular interest, urgent care providers shot up from 20^th to ninth on the list with an average annual salary of $221,000. Orthopedic surgeons still sit atop the list with an average annual salary of $521,000. Nearly all categories saw some increase. More than 95% of the companies that recruit physicians report offering to pay the doctor’s health, disability, and malpractice insurance. Solo practices appear to be inching back into the game after years of decline; about 5% of recruiting assignments in 2016 were for solo practice settings, up from 4% the previous year, and up from less than 1% the year before.