Different doctors salaries?

Are doctors' high salaries justified?

• Before you blow up on the subject, please understand my question. I know that most doctors don't even finish education and residency until age 30 (or later) and that they have ...show more

• Answer:

  Your generalizations are overly simplistic; nor should you singly out doctors for "ridiculously high " salaries because there are many many more occupations that pay more per hour (when you factor in hours) that have FAR less critical impact--your doctor is saving your life, allowing you to live longer and be healthier. No other field even comes close to that responsibility. No other field is so regulated by the county, state and federal government; no other field has such dire sanction if there is a mistake or error. My plumber charges $100 per hour to unstop a drain; corporate lawyers have charged $1000 /hr on retainer. I do believe some medical fields are a bit over paid (radiology, anesthesia) and others are grossly underpaid Ipeds, family practice,ER); I would like to see a bit more parity. But high health care costs are not drive much by MD income; they are driven by hospital costs (technology and staffing are not cheap-you have techs, nurses, aides, ancillary support--and all think they should be paid more); legal costs, inept reimbursements, pharmaceutical costs, R & D costs, and a population that demands state of the art care, lives longer and has more health problems.