Total cash compensation for general, cardiac and pediatric anesthesiologists has risen 14% to 16% since 2024, according to SullivanCotter’s 2026 Physician Compensation and Productivity Survey, released Sept. 17.
The survey covers 575 healthcare organizations, about 235,000 physicians and 240 specialties.
Here are five things to know:
1. Over the same period, CRNA total cash compensation grew almost 12%. Pay for diagnostic, interventional and mammography radiologists rose 12% to 18%.
2. SullivanCotter said fast pay growth in anesthesiology and radiology has “markedly shifted employment models and driven consolidation among private practice groups whose reimbursement has not kept pace with the TCC demands of new recruits in the field.”
3. Productivity hasn’t kept up. Across specialty categories, year-over-year work RVU growth ranged from 0.8% in primary care to 2.8% in adult medical specialties.
4. Pay is rising while there’s also pressure to lower annual work-effort expectations, and many organizations are reviewing how they design compensation plans. “As physician shortages persist and the implementation of AI tools alters care delivery, health care organizations must have agile compensation and care model strategies,” said Courtney Dutton, managing director and clinical workforce services leader at SullivanCotter.
5. Recruitment incentives are now standard. Nearly 95% of physicians received sign-on bonuses in 2026, and 49% of responding organizations offer student loan repayment.
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