Medical Economics 

May 8, 2013

PCPs generate more annual revenue for hospitals than specialists do, according to staffing firm Merritt Hawkins. 

PCPs (defined in the survey as family physicians, general internists, and pediatricians) generated a combined average of $1.57 million for their affiliated hospitals last year, compared with a combined $1.43 million across 15 specialties, according to the survey.

Those numbers represent a big change from 2002, when Merritt Hawkins first conducted the survey. At that time, PCPs generated $1.27 million annually for affiliated hospitals, whereas specialists generated $1.59 million. So over the past decade, primary care’s generated revenues have jumped 23%, whereas specialists’ have declined 10%.

“A seismic shift is taking place in medicine, away from specialists and toward primary care physicians” Mark Smith, president of Merritt Hawkins, said in a statement.