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At the end of last month, we began our blog series on our Top 10 Reasons Why Physicians Should Seek Legal Review of Their Employment Agreements. Part 2 of the series continues below:
3. Knowledge of What is Fair and Reasonable. As we discussed above, physicians are often eager to sign the employment agreements that they are offered, almost without even a second thought. Coming fresh out of training, young physicians are accustomed to earning a pittance for their hard work and time. So it is no surprise that when they see that first offer and realize they will soon be paid a real and substantial salary, they are ready to dive right in. The only problem is that these physicians are not in a position to gauge whether the offer is fair and reasonable based on current market norms and standards. Obviously the salary offered is a huge part of this, but there are a variety of other aspects to consider as well, including but not limited to the following: fringe benefits; reimbursement for relocation expenses; reimbursement for CME expenses and professional subscriptions and dues; and contribution toward student loan debt. The truth is, the only people who are really capable of offering an objective review of whether a contract’s terms are fair and reasonable are professionals who work with and on behalf of physicians. Such professionals (attorneys and CPAs, mostly) review and analyze a large number and variety of physician employment agreements and as a result, have an objective understanding of what physicians are being offered. Further, such professionals have on objective understanding of what physicians can reasonably and justifiably request of their employers. Additionally, only certain individuals have access to the facts and statistics concerning physician income. The Medical Group Management Association (MGMA) publishes annual data that breaks down physician compensation based on specialty and the geographic region of the country where the physician is employed. The MGMA does not make this information available to the public, but rather is only accessible to members who subscribe and pay a substantial fee
4. Lifestyle Factors You May Not Consider. When a physician receives an employment offer, her eyes are bound to go straight to the Compensation provision, paying little to no attention to the remaining terms. While the compensation offered is certainly important, there are additional provisions of any given contract that are even more likely to affect a physician’s day-to-day life and lifestyle. For instance, physician employment agreements often lay out a physician’s on-call responsibilities, but do so in a very vague way. Such ambiguous terms often put physicians in a position of agreeing to responsibilities that are completely open-ended and undefined. – basically an “agree now to what we may or may not dictate later” sort of situation. Not good. Physician employment agreements similarly often dictate that a physician will be responsible for certain administrative duties, with the extent of these duties being undefined. Agreeing to such responsibilities without an understanding of what they entail can have serious effects on a physician’s practice and quality of life. Aside from contract provisions relating to aspects that are analogous to medical practice, there are many that influence your life in more direct and significant ways. Practice locations, for example, are often undefined and may require a physician to serve any and all existing and future locations. You may assume that this is standard, but consider the potential repercussions. If a new practice location is opened an hour drive away from your home and you are subject to serve it, your daily life could be greatly impacted. Consider also if a contract requires your residency within a particular county, zip code or mile radius of a practice. Such fine print is often overlooked and can have enormous effects on your life and the life of your family.
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