TORT REFORM
It looks like the medical industry is going to push tort reform in the Utah State Legislature this year. That is no surprise since they’ve pushed it almost every year during the past 20 years. The recurring argument they make is that doctors are being put out of business by lawsuits. “We need tort reform to keep doctors in business.”
Here is a list of the top paying jobs in the United States. It is taken from Forbes magazine in May 2009. This list completely debunks the doctors’ arguments.
No. 1 Surgeons
Average Annual Pay: $206,770
One-Year Change: +8.0%
Employees in Field: 47,070
Best-Paying State: Wisconsin
The Job: Treat diseases, injuries and deformities by invasive methods,
such as manual manipulation or by using instruments and appliances
No. 2 Anesthesiologists
Average Annual Pay: $197,570
One-Year Change: +2.5%
Employees in Field: 34,230
Best-Paying State: Kentucky
The Job: Administer anesthetics during surgery or other medical
procedures.
No. 3 Orthodontists
Average Annual Pay: $194,930
One-Year Change: +5.2%
Employees in Field: 5,500
Best-Paying State: New Hampshire
The Job: Examine, diagnose and treat dental malocclusions and oral
cavity anomalies. Design and fabricate appliances to realign teeth and
jaws.
No. 4 Obstetrician and Gynecologists
Average Annual Pay: $192,780
One-Year Change: +5.0%
Employees in Field: 19,750
Best-Paying State: Wisconsin
The Job: Diagnose, treat and help prevent diseases of women, especially
those affecting the reproductive system and the process of childbirth.
No. 5 Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
Average Annual Pay: $190,420
One-Year Change: +6.7%
Employees in Field: 4,760
Best-Paying State: Michigan
The Job: Perform surgery on mouths and jaws.
No. 6 Internists, General
Average Annual Pay: $176,740
One-Year Change: +5.7%
Employees in Field: 46,980
Best-Paying State: Wisconsin
The Job: Diagnose and provide nonsurgical treatment of diseases and
injuries of internal organs and systems.
No. 7 Prosthodontists
Average Annual Pay: $169,810
One-Year Change: +0.3
Employees in Field: 370
Best-Paying State: New Jersey
The Job: Construct oral prostheses to replace missing teeth and other
oral structures.
No. 8 Physicians and Surgeons, All Other
Average Annual Pay: $165,000
One-Year Change: +6.3%
Employees in Field: 26,850
Best-Paying State: Minnesota
The Job: All physicians and surgeons outside of the main specialties.
No. 9 Family and General Practitioners
Average Annual Pay: $161,490
One-Year Change: +5.1%
Employees in Field: 106,210
Best-Paying State: Wisconsin
The Job: Diagnose, treat and help prevent diseases and injuries that
commonly occur in the general population.
No. 10 Chief Executives
Average Annual Pay: $160,440
One-Year Change: +6.0%
Employees in Field: 301,930
Best-Paying State: New Jersey
The Job: Determine and formulate policies and provide the overall
direction of companies or private- and public-sector organizations
within the guidelines set up by a board of directors.
No. 11 Dentists, General
Average Annual Pay: $154,270
One-Year Change: +4.9%
Employees in Field: 85,910
Best-Paying State: Alaska
The Job: Diagnose and treat diseases, injuries and malformations of
teeth and gums and related oral structures.
No. 12 Psychiatrists
Average Annual Pay: $154,050
One-Year Change: +4.4%
Employees in Field: 22,140
Best-Paying State: Nevada
The Job: Diagnose, treat and help prevent disorders of the mind.
No. 13 Pediatricians, General
Average Annual Pay: $153,370
One-Year Change: +5.6%
Employees in Field: 29,170
Best-Paying State: Kentucky
The Job: Diagnose, treat and help prevent children’s diseases and
injuries.
No. 14 Dentists, All Other Specialists
Average Annual Pay: $142,070
One-Year Change: +18.0%
Employees in Field: 4,770
Best-Paying State: Oregon
The Job: Specialist dentists excluding oral and maxillofacial surgeons,
orthodontists and prosthodontists.
No. 15 Podiatrists
Average Annual Pay: $125,760
One-Year Change: +5.0%
Employees in Field: 9,670
Best-Paying State: Idaho
The Job: Diagnose and treat diseases and deformities of the human foot.
The doctors’ argument reminds me of when Jack Paar walked off the Tonight Show on February 11, 1960. On that show he said “I’ve made a decision about what I’m going to do. I’m leaving The Tonight Show. There must be a better way to make a living than this, a way of entertaining people without being constantly involved in some form of controversy. I love NBC [...] But they let me down.” He then walked off the show.
Less than a month later, March 7, 1960, he returned saying, “As I was saying before I was interrupted…I believe the last thing I said was ‘There must be a better way to make a living than this.’ Well, I’ve looked…and there isn’t.’”
14 of the top 15 paying jobs in the United States are in the medical industry. Doctors aren’t leaving for better paying jobs. There are none.
