Pay for Physician CIOs, CMIOs Spikes 18%

While not expected to reach pre-recession levels anytime soon, physician executive pay continues to rise steadily, survey finds.

Despite the healthcare industry's recent emphasis on cost containment, including executive compensation, physician leaders' pay is up 8% since 2013, according to the 10th biennial Physician Leadership Compensation Survey, released by Cejka Executive Search and the American Association for Physician Leadership.

While this overall increase still lags pre-recession two-year growth rates of 12% reported in 2007, physician leaders in technology roles such as chief information officer (CIO) or chief medical information officer (CMIO) saw their compensation jump 18% ($372,500 vs. $315,000) from 2013 to 2016.

"Physicians in these transformative roles are often tasked with 'connecting the dots' across the organization and care continuum to achieve the greater efficiency and effectiveness of care required by newer reimbursement models, including population health management and accountable care," Joyce Tucker, Cejka Executive Search executive vice president and managing principal, said in an statement accompanying the survey results.

The self-reported compensation data collected from 2,353 physician leaders also revealed the following differences in median compensation:

• Emerging C-suite roles, such as physician in chief, chief strategy officer, chief transformational officer, chief innovation officer and chief integration officer: $499,000 vs. $469,000, up 6%
• Chief executive officer/president: $437,500 vs. $410,000, up 7%
• Chief medical officer: $388,000 vs. $365,000, up 6%
• Chief quality/patient safety officer: $375,000 vs. $375,000

Additional factors that influenced physician leaders' pay included post-graduate degrees and certifications, time spent on administration, and performance-based incentives.

Finally, rebounding physician executive pay can be attributed to broader and more complex work being performed. For example, 61% of physician executives reported that they have more strategic input than the previous year, while 54% have multiple or shared administrative reporting relationships.

Of those, 49% (versus 24% in 2013) are administratively accountable to more than one person, and 29% (versus 19% in 2013) have shared direct reports.

For more on compensation methodologies for physician leaders, join David Taylor, corporate vice president, Cox Health, for the HealthLeaders Media webcast, "Determining Compensation for Physicians in Leadership Positions." Available on demand.