Nice Work, Count Us In!
How many professions can proudly claim that those who practise can anticipate doubling their salaries in a decade? Nice work if you can get it. And, in Ontario, the medical profession has done just that. Their bargaining units successfully persuading the reigning Liberal government in the province that the health care system would profit by increased spending on doctors' salaries.
Being mindful that doctors have always had high earning power to begin with.
Most people can only dream of cashing in their education and professional expertise and capabilities in their field of chosen endeavour in excess of $100,000 yearly. Ontario doctors triple that. Where, ten years ago, before the ascension to power of the Dalton McGuinty Liberals, doctors earned on average $150,000, the average earnings now are in the neighbourhood of $300,000 annually.
In 2010, the province paid out $8-billion to its 26,000 doctors. In 1992, that amount was $3.7-billion. In a province that is hard-strapped with a nasty mounting deficit, increasing unemployment, facing accelerated costs in the provision of health care that represents a huge increase in salaries for a specific group of professionals. Whose collective contract is running out in March.
And, of course, medical doctors are now preparing to negotiate for a new contract. The premier has stated he feels confident that doctors are sufficiently grateful to the province for past lush contracts, to generously bypass the all-too-human desire to have their income increased. After all, they know that the province is burdened with a $16-billion deficit, and the prospect of a credit downgrade from Moody's Investors Services.
The Liberal government is proud of the fact that the generous raises in doctors' salaries encouraged a lot of Canadian doctors who had gone south to practise, to return home, helping to stem the tide of people who had no personal and family physicians to aid them negotiate the shoals of ill health and the unexpected onset of medical conditions.
A newly-released report prepared by Toronto's Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences has revealed that two-thirds of the province's 10,800 family doctors are remunerated to the tune of $280,000 to $350,000 yearly. The remaining one-third of family physicians who still bill according to a fee-for-service formula instead of for a specific list of patient services, are paid between $150,000 and $170,000.
Another Toronto think tank, the Mowat Centre, calculated a cut in provincial fees paid to certain medical specialists would result in a $5-billion saving over four years. Which could be used for other front-line services. Freeing up hospital beds assigned to the elderly, for example, by paying for home care.
Those health professionals engaged in specialties are remunerated even more generously than family physicians. Radiologists and ophthalmologists represented the top earners, averaging $600,000.
Amazing.
Being mindful that doctors have always had high earning power to begin with.
Most people can only dream of cashing in their education and professional expertise and capabilities in their field of chosen endeavour in excess of $100,000 yearly. Ontario doctors triple that. Where, ten years ago, before the ascension to power of the Dalton McGuinty Liberals, doctors earned on average $150,000, the average earnings now are in the neighbourhood of $300,000 annually.
In 2010, the province paid out $8-billion to its 26,000 doctors. In 1992, that amount was $3.7-billion. In a province that is hard-strapped with a nasty mounting deficit, increasing unemployment, facing accelerated costs in the provision of health care that represents a huge increase in salaries for a specific group of professionals. Whose collective contract is running out in March.
And, of course, medical doctors are now preparing to negotiate for a new contract. The premier has stated he feels confident that doctors are sufficiently grateful to the province for past lush contracts, to generously bypass the all-too-human desire to have their income increased. After all, they know that the province is burdened with a $16-billion deficit, and the prospect of a credit downgrade from Moody's Investors Services.
The Liberal government is proud of the fact that the generous raises in doctors' salaries encouraged a lot of Canadian doctors who had gone south to practise, to return home, helping to stem the tide of people who had no personal and family physicians to aid them negotiate the shoals of ill health and the unexpected onset of medical conditions.
A newly-released report prepared by Toronto's Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences has revealed that two-thirds of the province's 10,800 family doctors are remunerated to the tune of $280,000 to $350,000 yearly. The remaining one-third of family physicians who still bill according to a fee-for-service formula instead of for a specific list of patient services, are paid between $150,000 and $170,000.
Another Toronto think tank, the Mowat Centre, calculated a cut in provincial fees paid to certain medical specialists would result in a $5-billion saving over four years. Which could be used for other front-line services. Freeing up hospital beds assigned to the elderly, for example, by paying for home care.
Those health professionals engaged in specialties are remunerated even more generously than family physicians. Radiologists and ophthalmologists represented the top earners, averaging $600,000.
Amazing.
posted by Pieface | 7:08 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home