NY and CT ranked among worst states for doctors trying to make a living

A new data analysis published by WalletHub has determined that New York is the worst state for doctors trying to make a living in the medical profession and Connecticut is the third worst state.

The study, which covered the 50 states and District of Columbia, number-crunched 19 key metrics ranging from average annual wage of physicians to hospitals per capita to quality of public hospital system. Montana topped the list as the best state for a physician to make a living, followed in the top five by Wisconsin, Idaho, North Dakota and Minnesota.

New York placed second to last for annual wages earned by physicians ”“ only the District of Columbia fared worse ”“ and tied with several states for the highest projected level of professional competition by 2026. New York was burdened with the highest malpractice award payout per capita and the most expensive annual malpractice liability insurance rate ”“ in comparison, North Dakota had the lowest malpractice award payout per capita and Wisconsin had the least expensive annual malpractice liability insurance rate. Connecticut also had the third highest malpractice award payout per capita.

However, New York and Connecticut ranked second and third for the nation”™s least punitive medical boards ”“ Massachusetts ranked first, Delaware ranked last.

WalletHub noted that physicians ranked as the highest paid job type in 2019, with a median base salary of over $193,000 and more than 3,700 job openings during the year. On the other hand, the average medical school graduate goes into the workforce with about $194,000 in student loan debt.