RE: [cdn-nucl-l] Radiology salaries; time for career change

["Jaro" <jaro-10kbq@sympatico.ca>]

Yeah, the salaries are certainly appealing -- but look at what its doing to
the US health-care system (see article pasted below) : "The U.S. has the
most expensive health-care system in the world, consuming 13.9 per cent of
GDP, compared with 9.7 per cent in Canada. "

 Jaro

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

http://www.canada.com/montreal/montrealgazette/columnists/story.asp?id=9D4B6
F7A-99B0-4B01-BFA5-EAFE410671A5
Canada's health-care edge
PETER HADEKEL, Freelance
Friday, October 24, 2003

Among all the issues facing the U.S. economy these days, the skyrocketing
cost of health-care coverage ranks near the top.
Employee health-insurance costs for U.S. corporations have grown at a
double-digit pace during the last five years
In 2003, the increase was 16 per cent; for next year, it's pegged at 12 per
cent, according to a recent study by the consulting firm Towers Perrin.
"Companies are paying twice as much in health-care costs as they paid six
years ago," said a Towers Perrin official, who described it as the longest
period of sustained increase on record.
The impact on workers has been dramatic. By next year, employee
contributions to health-care plans will have risen 46 per cent since 2002,
the study found.
This year, the average cost of providing family coverage to a U.S. employee
is $9,068, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Of that amount, the
employee pays $2,412 on average, with the company covering the other $6,656.
Economists have begun to focus on the impact that rising health costs might
be having on the job market.
"There's no doubt that it does discourage hiring," says Russell Sheldon,
senior economist at BMO Nesbitt Burns. It's one more payroll cost employers
must consider.
Bob Eicher, a principal at Towers Perrin, says that employers look at total
compensation costs, not just wages, before they hire. A low-end factory job
in the U.S., that pays $20,000 in salary typically might come with a $10,000
cost attached to it for family health-care coverage.
"It's an extreme deterrent to hiring," Eicher said. It's no accident that
U.S. employers are moving their operations offshore, he added.
The fact that Canada has a public health-insurance system is turning out to
be a major competitive advantage for companies located here. U.S.
automakers, for example, have long valued their presence in Canada because
they don't have to shell out for basic health-care coverage.
Canada's medicare system ensures that labour markets respond better to
supply and demand, said the BMO's Sheldon, without the issue of health-care
costs complicating the hiring decision.
An increasing number of experts say the U.S. system is unsustainable.
In the short run, companies are pushing more of the dollar cost of coverage
onto employees in the form of deductibles and co-payments, at a time when
wages and incomes are flat. In the long run, more companies will simply get
out of the business of providing health coverage.
Eicher notes that some companies already stipulate that an employee must be
on the job for six or 12 months or must work a minimum of 25 or 30 hours a
week in order to qualify for health insurance.
Small businesses are getting squeezed hard and are dropping or cutting back
on coverage. That's one reason the number of uninsured Americans rose 2.4
million last year to a record 43.6 million.
The factors behind rising costs are many. One is that the average age of
employees is rising. Another is the sharp increase in the price of hospital
services.
The U.S. has the most expensive health-care system in the world, consuming
13.9 per cent of GDP, compared with 9.7 per cent in Canada. And that's
proving to be a liability.
phadekel@videotron.ca
==============================

-----Original Message-----
From: cdn-nucl-l-admin@informer2.cis.McMaster.CA
[mailto:cdn-nucl-l-admin@informer2.cis.McMaster.CA]On Behalf Of Jerry
Cuttler
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2003 10:29 AM
To: cdn-nucl-l (E-mail); ANS Member Exchange Listserv; RAD-SCI-L
Subject: [cdn-nucl-l] Radiology salaries; time for career change


It's time for a career change.
Jerry
----------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.auntminnie.com/default.asp?Sec=sup&Sub=imc&Pag=dis&ItemId=59572

Radiology salaries rise again in south
10/23/03
By: Brian Casey

snip ...

AuntMinnie's CompHealth SalaryScan survey collected data from more than
3,600 radiology professionals during a six-week period in July and August
2003. It covered 15 job categories, with radiology professionals from around
the world participating.

According to SalaryScan data, the highest-paid radiologists were in the U.S.
West South Central area, comprising the states of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas,
and Louisiana. The average base salary in the region for radiologists was
$348,591.
The next-highest-paid radiologists were found in the U.S. South Atlantic
region, with an average base salary of $322,687. This area includes the
states of Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South
Carolina, Georgia, Florida, and Washington, DC.

But imaging physicians in the U.S. East South Central region weren't so
lucky, reporting an average base salary of $277,565. This zone included
Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama.

snip ...

Sample SalaryScan international highlights are as follows:
- Canadian radiologists reported an average base salary of $256,702 (U.S.
dollars).
- Australian and New Zealand radiologists, $205,154.
- Western European radiologists, $177,770.
- Middle East and Central Asia radiologists, $52,852.

snip ...

By Brian Casey
AuntMinnie.com staff writer
October 23, 2003

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