Gender Differences in Medicare Payments Among Cardiologists

IMPORTANCE: Women cardiologists receive lower salaries than men; however, it is unknown whether US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reimbursement also differs by gender and contributes to the lower salaries. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether gender differences exist in the reimbursements, charges, and reimbursement per charge from CMS. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This cross-sectional analysis used the CMS database to obtain 2016 reimbursement data for US cardiologists. These included reimbursements to cardiologists, charges submitted, and unique billing codes. Gender differences in reimbursement for evaluation and management and procedural charges from both inpatient and outpatient settings were also assessed. Analysis took place between April 2019 and December 2020. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Outcomes included median CMS payments received and median charges submitted in the inpatient and outpatient settings in 2016. RESULTS: In 2016, 17 524 cardiologists (2312 women [13%] and 15 212 men [87%]) received CMS payments in the inpatient setting, and 16 929 cardiologists (2151 women [13%] and 14 778 men [87%]) received CMS payments in the outpatient setting. Men received higher median payments in the inpatient (median [interquartile range], $62 897 [$30 904-$104 267] vs $45 288 [$21 371-$73 191]; P