Recently Shopdme posted a great article breaking down how much your doctor actually makes when you go in.
The approximate breakdown of a $100 new-patient appointment:
$9 for malpractice insurance
$4 for equipment and maintenance
$8 for supplies
$6 for rent and utilities
$10 for office expenses such as telephones, accounting fees, advertising, medical journals, licenses, and taxes
$28 for staff salaries and benefits
$35 for the doctor
This does not include billing costs, legal fees if needed, the cost of implementing electronic health records or the cost of new equipment to keep up with the changes in medicine.
Most doctors graduate with large student loans.
I personally pay $2400 a month in student loans and have been for over 11 years. This means that I must see 69 patients a month just to cover my student loans. Then I can start earning money to cover food, housing, clothing, car costs, health insurance, and other expenses. If this cost $3000/month, it would take another 90 patients a month to see. That's 159 total. Reimbursement is lower for established patients. This doesn't include day care if the doctor has children or the cost of repairing equipment or their car.
The next time that you come in to your doctor. Please don't say, well, you're a doctor you can afford it. They have sacrificed many years of their lives and are usually in serious debt, to take care of people!
