Primary care physician (PCP) compensation in the United States exceeds $100,000 per year in all but two metropolitan areas, according to a new analysis by The Business Journals.
For the analysis, Business Journals examined Bureau of Labor Statistics compensation data from May 2011 on 256 metropolitan areas.
PCP compensation by metropolitan markets
It found that the average U.S. family and general practitioner made $177,300 per year, or $85.26 per hour.
The 10 metropolitan markets with the highest annual pay for family and general practitioners were:
1. Waterloo-Cedar Falls, Iowa ($249,950);
2. Ogden-Clearfield, Utah ($243,150);
3. North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, Fla. ($242,410);
4. Nashua, N.H/Mass. ($239,930);
5. Montgomery, Ala. ($233,070);
6. Monroe, La. ($232,900);
7. Merced, Calif. ($231,340);
8. Reno-Sparks, Nev. ($230,080);
9. Little Rock-Conway, Ark. ($227,930); and
10. Portsmouth, N.H./Maine ($225,990).
Meanwhile, the 10 metropolitan markets with the lowest annual pay for family and general practitioners were:
1. Columbia, Mo. ($73,150);
2. Fort Collins-Loveland, Colo. ($98,360);
3. Miami-Miami Beach-Kendall, Fla. ($104,030);
4. Harrisburg-Carlisle, Pa. ($125,160);
5. Lawton, Okla. ($125,500);
6. Portland-Biddeford, Maine ($125,940);
7. Bellingham, Wash. ($127,170);
8. Myrtle Beach-Conway, S.C. ($129,220);
9. Yuba City, Calif. ($129,800); and
10. Columbus, Ga./Ala. ($130,270).
Concentration of PCPs in metropolitan markets
In addition, Business Journals evaluated the concentration of PCPs in a metropolitan area by comparing it to concentrations in similar markets. It found that Columbia, Mo., had the most unusually high concentration of PCPs, with six-and-half times more PCPs than a comparably sized metro area (Thomas, Business Journals, 5/23).
