Physician pay. I hope there are no doctors in hiding within this class
because this a pretty touchy subject. It is also a subject I am a bit torn
on if we are being 100% truthful. First, I am not sure I can support a
large connection between the "first do no harm" and a paycheck. At
the end of the day, it costs a lot of money to become a doctor and at
the same time, it costs a lot to stay a doctor from insurance costs
alone. Thats only one reason why I do not think this conversation is
so easy to discuss. Education costs for medical school easily exceed
$100,000 and in many cases, $150,000-$220,000. It is not just the
physical education. Its the fact that a student routinely has to take
out enough money in loans to cover living expenses, food, and other
basic living function bills and expenses. At the end of the day, why
would anyone pay that much money to become something if it
doesn't yield financial benefit? We often hear about the student debt
crisis ongoing in the country and graduates complaining about "not
being to dig themselves out." a In that respect, we already have a
physician shortage and I am sure factors like this would only worsen
it.
Now I would like to address the education and talent that many
doctors bring to their patients. With literally years of training and in
some cases, a decade until completion, the same rules apply. Where is
the return? What makes this all worth it? What does earning a
doctorate bring? Whats the difference between a physician earning
$200,000 and a billionaire like Jeff Bezos earning his billions? While I
don't think physicians need a raise, I believe that they have justified
earnings. In addition, physician salaries aren't the only thing impacting
the consumer. Because hospitals can charge pretty much whatever
they want, they use this to pay their CEOs, executive boards, and
physicians these higher salaries. Its a double edge sword. To play big
you have to pay big!
References:
Admin. “Physician Salary .” Kaplan Test Prep, Admin
Http://Wpapp.kaptest.com/Wp-
Content/Uploads/2020/09/kaplan_logo_purple_726-4.Png, 3 Jan.
2022, https://www.kaptest.com/study/mcat/doctor-salaries-by-
specialty/.
Tricia Christensen Last Modified Date: February 16, et al. “Why Do
Doctors Make so Much Money?” Practical Adult Insights, 16 Feb.
