Don’t cry for MDs: Despite hype, they’re still making money

So much for the reports that managed care is savaging physician’s salaries: They’re still rising, according to the Medical Group Management Association. Overall, salaries rose 4.5% in 1995, with specialists averaging about a 2% increase. The survey reported that male physicians had higher salaries than female physicians across the board.

Among those posting the biggest gains:

Dermatologists: Salaries rose an average 7%, from $165,009 to $176,948.

Family practitioners: Up 6%, from $122,000 to $129,418.

Internists: Up 4%, from $133,581 to $139,320.

In addition, pediatricians registered a net gain of 2%, from $126,000 to $129,000.

But don’t cry for the losers in the salary game: They include some of the highest-paid specialists in medicine. Anesthesiologists’ salaries dropped an average of 2% to $240,666, while neurosurgeons lost an average of 3.5% of their income in 1995: from $399,265 to $385,233.