Amid reduced reimbursements and escalating healthcare costs, hospitals will be doling out similar compensation increases for their employed physicians in 2012 compared to this year, according to Hay Group's 2011 Physician Compensation Survey released this week. Overall, hospital-based physicians can expect to see a 2.5 percent pay raise, slightly up from 2.3 percent in 2011.
However, their pay hikes will be lower than their group-based physician counterparts, according to the survey. Hospital-based primary care physicians could see a 2.9 percent base salary increase in the coming year, while group-based primary care physicians can expect 3.3 percent. Specialists employed by hospitals can expect to see a 2.4 percent pay raise, well below the 4.5 percent salary increase expected for group-based physician specialists.
In addition, researchers found that hospitals were less likely to use annual incentive plans for their physicians in 2011 (59 percent) than they were in 2010 (63 percent). Press release