According to a 2018 study, generalist physicians earned an average
of $218,713 in the United States, compared with an average of
$133,723 across OECD nations. The disparity was even wider for
specialists, who earned an average of $316,000 in the U.S. and an
OECD average of $182,657. These pay differences reflect overall
differences in wage rates between countries, which are greatest for
the most-educated workers. In the U.S., individuals working in
business, law, or education earn substantially more than those
abroad, so health care jobs must also pay more to attract educated
workers. Although Europeans may study medicine as undergraduates
(usually with a 5- or 6-year course), in North America students must
study for eight years before receiving a medical degree (4 years of
medical school in addition to a 4-year undergraduate degree). This is
then usually followed by a 3-to-7-year residency program, depending
on the specialty. Additionally, in 2019, only 21,869 of 53,371
medical school applicants were able to find places, with the median
debt for medical school graduates now reaching over $200,000. The
additional years of study (with associated tuition fees, living
expenses, and earnings foregone) required prior to medical training
increases the cost of entering the medical profession and reduces the
supply of doctors without demonstrably improving the quality of care
(Pope, 2020).
Aside from the high costs and many years of learning that must be
invested before becoming a physician, a large part of the reason
physicians are paid so highly is because of rules and regulations that
restrict the number of people who can get residencies, adding to
physician shortages. The U.S. residency system turns away thousands
of perfectly qualified students every year. These include many
foreign doctors, who are barred from practicing here unless they
complete a residency within the country. It’s been argued that
allowing for an increased supply of doctors by lessening the strict
regulations and increasing the number of residency slots available
would lower the inflated incomes of physicians to the point where it
could save Americans $100 billion a year, which equates to roughly
$300 per person (Rosalsky, 2019). Therefore, although the extensive
years of study and high costs associated with medical training
warrant high salaries for physicians, limitations introduced by capped
residency slots and entry barriers have inflated physicians’ salaries
far beyond most developed nations.
References:
1. Pope, C. (2020). One Reason Why Doctors Are Paid So Much:
North American Education. Retrieved from
https://economics21.org/one-reason-why-doctors-paid-so-
much-education.
2. Rosalsky, G. (2019). Are Doctors Overpaid? NPR.Retrieved
from
https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2019/03/12/70250040
8/are-doctors-overpaid.
