Faq

# Frequently Asked Questions ## Using the Rate Evaluator **Is the evaluator free?** Yes, completely. No account, no email, no signup. Enter your numbers and get your result. **How do I use the rate evaluator?** Select your specialty, state, and practice setting. Enter the hourly rate you've been offered and click "Compare to Market Data." It looks up your specialty and region and shows you where your offer falls relative to current survey benchmarks. **What does "percentile" mean here?** If your rate is at the 40th percentile, roughly 60% of locum physicians in your specialty and region are being paid more for the same setting. I think of it the same way I think about a lab value — it tells you where you stand relative to the reference range, not whether you're sick. **What's the difference between urban hospital and rural critical access?** Urban hospitals are community hospitals and academic medical centers in metro areas. Rural critical access hospitals are CMS-designated facilities — typically small communities more than 35 miles from the nearest hospital. As a general surgeon I've seen this firsthand: rural critical access settings pay significantly more because the shortage is real and facilities know it. **Why only two settings?** Those are the two settings with enough published benchmark data to be meaningful. Telehealth, VA, and outpatient clinic locum rates vary too much across sources to report confidently. I'd rather show you two reliable numbers than five unreliable ones. --- ## Data Questions **Where does the data come from?** BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, CMS Geographic Practice Cost Indices, and published surveys from AMN Healthcare, CHG Healthcare, and Weatherby Healthcare. Full methodology on the [About](/about/) page. **Are these locum rates or employed physician rates?** Locum rates. BLS data is for employed physicians, so we apply a structured adjustment for benefits replacement, flexibility premium, and rural shortage premium. The adjustment methodology is on the [About](/about/) page. **How current is the data?** BLS vintage is 2024. Industry surveys range from 2024–2025. Updated annually. **My offer is way outside the range. Is the data wrong?** Not necessarily. The ranges reflect typical market rates — outliers exist on both ends. Very specialized assignments, long-term established relationships, or facilities under financial stress can all produce rates outside the normal range. Use the percentile as a reference point, not a ceiling or floor. **Why regions instead of states?** More data per cell means more reliable estimates. Four Census regions gives enough granularity to be useful while keeping the sample sizes large enough to trust. State-specific context — compact license status, shortage designations, cost of living — is on each state page. --- ## About the Results **I'm below the median. What does that mean practically?** It means your offer is below what most physicians in your specialty and region are receiving for the same setting, based on current survey data. The evaluator shows a range consistent with the market median for your situation. What you do with that is your call — but at least now you're negotiating from data, not guessing. **Are the "next steps" AI-generated?** No. Each specialty and setting has a fixed set of leverage points based on what actually moves the needle in that market — written based on published data and physician input. They're the same for every physician in that specialty and setting, not generated on the fly. **Should I always push back on an offer?** I can't tell you what to do — that depends on your situation, timeline, and relationship with the agency. What I can tell you is that knowing your percentile rank before that conversation is better than not knowing it. --- ## Toolkit Questions **What's in the negotiation toolkit?** Expanded rate benchmark tables for all 50 states, sample negotiation language with talking points, a contract review checklist, state-by-state take-home pay comparison accounting for state income tax, and a malpractice/tail coverage reference guide. One-time purchase, $29. **What format?** PDF. Downloadable immediately after purchase. **Can I share it with colleagues?** Yes. The LocumRates URL is on every page — if it spreads, that's fine. Just don't resell it. **Refund policy?** Handled through Payhip within 30 days of purchase.