For the first time in five years, primary care physicians in group practices received smaller pay increases than group-practice physicians in other specialties. According to data from the Medical Group Management Association, the median compensation increase for primary care physicians was 1.42 percent in 1996 compared with an increase of 2.58 percent for non-primary-care doctors.

Among primary care physicians, internists received the smallest increase in median compensation: 0.49 percent ($680), bringing them to $140,000. Pediatricians received an increase of 2.29 percent ($2,954) to $132,039, and family physicians earned a median of $132,434, 2.54 percent ($3,286) more than in 1995. The median compensation for all other specialists in 1996 was $221,544, up from $215,978 in 1995.

Source: Physician Compensation and Production Survey: 1997 Report Based on 1996 Data. Englewood, Colo: Medical Group Management Association; 1997:12.