Healthcare costs during residency

[Cushcat]

Is healthcare free during residency? Ie will our insurances cover dental care and other healthcare?
Thanks

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[Cushcat]

Thanks for the reply. How much can I expect to pay per month?
Also, can I prescribe simple drugs for myself and family, such as my migraine meds?

 

[LucidSplash]

The cost will vary depending on what your program offers, if it is just you or if you have a family, and the type of coverage you select. It will be tough to give you an estimated amount here.

The topic of prescribing for others has been covered in other threads. In short, technically your training license only permits you to prescribe under the supervision of an attending. Additionally even with a full license you are expected to have a patient-physician relationship with someone you prescribe to. That being said many of us have basic meds written for us by other residents on occasion but never narcotics. If you have a regular need for a certain med it's better to just have a PCP for that.

 

[LucidSplash]

I should say "jinx" to @SouthernSurgeon.

 

[Cushcat]

btw, if the salary is 70k is that before deduction for health insurance and malpractice insurance?? Thanks!

 

[hamstergang]

btw, if the salary is 70k is that before deduction for health insurance and malpractice insurance?? Thanks!

Residency is a job. Like every job, they will advertise the base salary. You will have taxes and various other things deducted from that (like social security). Health insurance will also be deducted, the amount of which depends on the program itself and the plan you pick.

Every program, like every other job, varies in the precise amounts of all these things. If you're trying to figure out what your take home pay will be, you should just ask that and I'm sure people have good ways to estimate it.

Are you expecting many medical expenses during residency?

 

[Cushcat]

Not really, but I have a family to support with my residency salary, as well as a loan, so trying to do my calculations far in advance.

 

[DrBowtie]

Ask the residents when you interview what they pay. During residency, I paid no monthly premium but had relatively high costs when I needed to use it.

 

[LucidSplash]

Not really, but I have a family to support with my residency salary, as well as a loan, so trying to do my calculations far in advance.

There are online calculators you can use. All salaries are going to be in pre-tax dollars.

 

[NotAProgDirector]

I wouldn't use $70K as the salary you expect in a PGY-1. The average PGY-1 salary is about $51K. Some places will pay more, but often because the cost of living in that location is more. But if you can find a good program with a low cost of living and a PGY-1 salary of $70K, go for it!

 

[sazerac]

Ask the residents when you interview what they pay. During residency, I paid no monthly premium but had relatively high costs when I needed to use it.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, at my program we have a monthly fee taken from our paycheck (a little bit more if you need to cover families too), and all health care is zero cost to the residents. No deductible, no copay, no limits. The resident insurance plan is better than the one the attendings get.

As you can see, OP, the answers are all over the place and everything in between. It is definitely worth asking about the health insurance benefits on the interview trail, especially if they don't volunteer them at interview orientation.

 

[deleted245139]

btw, if the salary is 70k is that before deduction for health insurance and malpractice insurance?? Thanks!

Budget yourself. My daughter was born intern year. You'll live a different life than your fellow single residents. 70k when single is a different Amt of money. We had a lot of health scares over the three years and it can be draining

 

[Raryn]

Is healthcare free during residency? Ie will our insurances cover dental care and other healthcare?
Thanks

Highly variable from program to program. I had no premiums and phenomenal insurance as a resident, vs a monthly premium and so-so insurance as a fellow. Your salary will be the # listed before taxes and any premiums expected from the residents (which aren't always there), but the program will pay the malpractice insurance for you 100% of the time (so don't worry about that).

 

[rokshana]

btw, if the salary is 70k is that before deduction for health insurance and malpractice insurance?? Thanks!

if the pgy 1 salary is 70k, then you are living in a pretty expensive area...while it will vary, your take home will probably be around 2800 +/- 500/ month. This will depend on how much in taxes, insurance, association fees, etc you have taken out.

 

[Cushcat]

if the pgy 1 salary is 70k, then you are living in a pretty expensive area...while it will vary, your take home will probably be around 2800 +/- 500/ month. This will depend on how much in taxes, insurance, association fees, etc you have taken out.

Is 2800 the take home pay on a 50k pgy1salary?

 

[FlowLimited]

Is 2800 the take home pay on a 50k pgy1salary?

If you know your salary you can use this website: www.paycheckcity.com to estimate your take home pay.