Average annual hospital revenue generated by general surgeons dropped 11.9% from 2010 to 2013, according to a survey by physician job placement firm Merritt Hawkins.
The decrease is in line with the overall picture of net revenue earned by hospitals. The average net revenue generated for all physicians was $1.45 million – a drop of 6.2% from 2010 and, again, the lowest average since 2002, Merritt Hawkins said in its analysis.
The trend of dropping revenue "may be tied to changing venues of care as urgent care centers and occupational medicine centers absorb general surgery work previously done in hospitals," the survey authors wrote.
Average revenue of $1.86 million was reported for general surgeons in 2013, down from $2.11 million in 2010. By comparison, hospital revenue generated was almost $1.42 million for all specialists and $1.57 for all primary care physicians in 2013. The specialists’ average is the lowest Merritt Hawkins has reported since it started the survey in 2002 and is lower than the primary care average for the first time ever, the report noted.
The survey was sent to 5,500 hospitals in January 2013 and was completed by 102 hospital chief financial executives.
