Emergency Medicine Physician Salary Guide

The average annual emergency medicine physician salary is $316,600 per year in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That being said, emergency medicine doctors surveyed by Medscape for its 2023 physician compensation report reported an average annual salary of $352,000.

Locum tenens emergency medicine physicians certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) can make upwards of $260-–$400 an hour, however, there are many factors that impact rates including location, years of experience, and the level of demand.

If you were to extrapolate the low end of this range over a year (at 40 hours per week), a locum tenens emergency medicine physician certified by the ABEM could make $540,800 per year or more.

That means locum tenens emergency medicine physicians could make 70% more per year than the average emergency medicine doctor. Making direct salary comparisons between locum tenens and permanent providers can be complicated. While perm emergency medicine physicians are more likely to be salaried, locum tenens doctors are independent contractors earning an hourly rate, which can vary based on which assignments they take in a year.

Furthermore, because locum tenens emergency medicine physicians are paid by the hour, the hours they work are directly reflected in their pay, while a salaried doctor’s additional hours may not be reflected in their salary.

Finally, paid time off and insurance may be reflected in the perm doctor salary structure, but locum tenens providers do have options when it comes to health insurance.

The most recent state breakdown of anesthesiologist salaries comes from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, though the BLS was not able to collect enough data for all 50 states. That said, some of the top 5 highest paying states for emergency medicine physician salary are:

• Alaska
• Arkansas
• Indiana
• Louisiana
• Maine

How do Emergency Medicine Physician Salaries Compare Against Other Doctor Specialties?

Emergency medicine physicians are the 15th highest-paid physician specialty surveyed in the Medscape 2023 compensation report. According to that report, emergency medicine doctors make more on average than pathologists ($339,000 annual salary), OB/GYNs ($337,000 annual salary), and neurologists ($313,000 annual salary).

Emergency medicine physician salaries have increased over the last several years, with a 15% increase in reported salary since 2015, according to Medscape’s report.  If this continues, emergency medicine physicians can expect to earn more in 2024.

Check out and apply to our open locum tenens emergency medicine physician jobs today!