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Sample Report
Neurology Contract — Sample Analysis
Full-fidelity demo. The same report structure you receive after purchase, populated with realistic academic neurology data benchmarked against 2025 specialty benchmark ranges. Score: 58/100.
Contract Analysis · Neurology
sample-neurology-contract.pdf
Moderate Risk
0 = physician-favorable · 100 = extreme risk
Income Snapshot
Four numbers: the total revenue your work generates, what you take home, what your group collects in professional fees, and what the hospital captures. Estimates, not promises. We do not estimate employer cost — if the group wants to argue cost, they can provide their data to you.
Total revenue you generate
Coming soon
Revenue breakdown is rolling out specialty by specialty — live now for emergency medicine and hospital medicine.
Your estimated take-home
$221,488 – $329,219
Mid-range: $246,250
Gross $325,000 – $483,080 minus your share of insurance, retirement, malpractice tail, and tax.
Professional fees collected
Coming soon
Specialty-specific revenue ranges are rolling out — live now for emergency medicine and hospital medicine.
Hospital revenue captured
N/A
Hospital facility-fee math is currently scoped to emergency medicine.
Take-home at median production is about $246,000 on $361,335 gross, ranging $221,000–$329,000 across P25-to-P75 production scenarios. Estimated taxes — federal, employee payroll, and New York state at a combined 32% effective rate — are the only modeled expense line for a W-2 employee. W-2 status keeps malpractice and health premiums off the physician's ledger; a 1099 arrangement would move both onto it.
Executive Summary
This contract presents a $325,000 academic base salary that sits exactly at the 2025 national general neurology base-compensation median of $325,000. Total compensation tells the fuller story: the national median is $369,011 (P25 $315,652 / P75 $446,457), and at median production this contract grosses about $361,000 — roughly $7,700 short of the total-compensation median. The headline rate is competitive. The compensation gap is not in the base; it is in the unpaid work the contract assigns alongside it.
The single largest item is stroke call. The contract assigns 1-in-7 stroke-call coverage (roughly 52 nights and weekends per year) with no separate compensation. The 2025 national neurology on-call data puts the daily call rate at $898 at median and $1,185 at P75, with weekend rates at $1,185; annual on-call compensation runs $30,075 at median and $57,117 at P75. The differential reflects acute decision-making liability under the tPA window, in-house response-time requirements, and overnight call frequency. At a negotiated $1,000/shift, the uncompensated coverage represents $52,000/year — a 16% effective compensation cut against the stated base.
Procedure compensation is the second structural issue. EMG, EEG, and intraoperative monitoring concentrate wRVU volume — procedure-focused neurologists post a median of 5,770 wRVUs/year against 5,059 for general neurology — and the contract pays every wRVU above its 4,500 threshold at a flat $65, below the $70.19 national median rate per wRVU. The producers this structure attracts are exactly the ones who accumulate the most below-median-rate work.
The contract includes a 25-mile, 12-month non-compete with a carve-out for stroke neurology in emergency-department settings. The state-specific enforceability assessment appears in the dedicated non-compete section of this report.
The contract is not a non-starter. The base is at the median. Three changes close the remaining gap: stroke-call differential, procedure-bonus separation, and tail coverage commitment.
Key Red Flags
- Stroke call (1-in-7, ~52 shifts/year) compensated at base rate — the 2025 national neurology daily call rate is $898 at median and $1,185 at P75, putting the uncompensated coverage near $47,000–$62,000/year
- Every wRVU above the 4,500 bonus threshold pays a flat $65 — below the $70.19 national median $/wRVU — and EMG / EEG / IOM procedure work is bundled into the same pool with no separate credit
- Claims-made malpractice with no employer-funded tail commitment — NY academic neurology tail typically $25,000–$45,000
- At median production (5,059 wRVUs) total compensation reaches about $361,000 — roughly $7,700 below the $369,011 national total-compensation median
- Inpatient consult volume uncapped with no per-consult differential — uncompensated overnight follow-up burden
Key Strengths
- Base salary of $325,000 sits exactly at the 2025 national general neurology base-compensation median — competitive headline rate
- Employer-funded claims-made malpractice during active employment
- Base floor holds gross at $325,000 even at P25 production (3,739 wRVUs), and 10% protected academic time is excluded from wRVU expectations
Compensation Analysis
MODERATEYour $/wRVU vs the market
Your effective rate of $71.42/wRVU sits at the 51st percentile for this specialty. The shaded band is the national middle 50% (P25–P75).
What you earn at each production level
Annual compensation at your contract rate versus the specialty-median rate, across P25 / median / P75 production. The gap is the cost of the rate, and it grows with volume.
Model
Base Salary + wRVU Productivity Bonus
Base Rate
$325,000 / year
Shift differentials: No stroke-call differential defined — 1-in-7 stroke coverage at base rate
wRVU Rate vs Benchmark
The 2025 national neurology $/wRVU distribution runs $58.45 (P25) / $70.19 (median) / $94.52 (P75); the $65 marginal rate sits between P25 and the median. At the median rate, market compensation on benchmark production is $262,440 (P25, 3,739 wRVUs), $355,091 (median, 5,059 wRVUs), and $486,557 (P75, 6,932 wRVUs). The contract structure pays $325,000 / $361,335 / $483,080 at the same production levels — $62,560 ahead of the median-rate market at P25 production on the strength of the base floor, $6,244 ahead at median, and $3,477 behind at P75; the 3-year position at median production is roughly $18,700 ahead. The exposure is in the mix: every wRVU above the 4,500 threshold pays $65 against the $70.19 median, so heavy procedure producers carry the largest share of below-median-rate work.
Multiplier: $65.00/wRVU · work RVU
Sign-on Bonus
$40,000
3-year linear vest with full repayment if separation in year 1; pro-rata months 13–36
CME Coverage
$4,000/year allowance, 7 CME days
Productivity Bonus
$65/wRVU on production above 4,500 wRVUs/year, paid annually in arrears
Net Take-Home
Gross (P25 – P75)
$325,000 – $483,080
Mid: $361,335
Classification
W-2
Drives the expense math
Estimated take-home
$221,488 – $329,219
Mid: $246,250
| Expense line | Annual range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Estimated taxes (federal + payroll + state) | $103,513 – $153,861 | W-2: federal + employee payroll + NY (32% effective). |
Assumptions
- W-2 employee; employer-paid health and malpractice premiums are not deducted from gross
- 32% combined effective tax rate (federal + employee payroll + NY state)
- Production scenarios anchored to 2025 national neurology wRVU percentiles (P25 3,739 / median 5,059 / P75 6,932)
- Retirement elective deferrals excluded from the net calculation
- No 1099 side income from EMG locum or expert work
Revenue Breakdown (rolling out)
Revenue breakdown is rolling out specialty by specialty. Emergency medicine is live first; other specialties follow as we tune collected-revenue ranges per specialty and practice setting.
Missing Protections
Stroke-call differential
The contract assigns 1-in-7 stroke-call coverage (~52 shifts/year) with no separate compensation. Academic stroke call carries acute decision-making liability under the tPA / thrombectomy time window, requires in-house response or rapid response capability, and concentrates on overnight and weekend hours. The 2025 national neurology on-call data shows a median daily call rate of $898 and a P75 of $1,185, with weekend rates at $1,185 median; annual on-call compensation runs $30,075 at median and $57,117 at P75.
"Add a stroke-call differential of $1,000/shift in addition to base salary, paid monthly in arrears, for all stroke-call coverage assigned. Alternatively, exempt the physician from the stroke-call rotation in exchange for a base-rate increase."
Procedure-specific wRVU multiplier
EMG, EEG, intraoperative monitoring (IOM), and long-term video EEG monitoring concentrate wRVU volume — procedure-focused neurologists post a median of 5,770 wRVUs/year (P75 7,590) against 5,059 for general neurology. Bundling all wRVUs into a single pool at a flat $65 above the threshold pays the heaviest procedure producers below the $70.19 national median rate on every incremental wRVU.
"Add a procedure-specific multiplier: wRVUs generated from CPT codes 95860–95887 (EMG), 95812–95830 (EEG), and 95940–95941 (IOM) are credited at 1.5× the standard wRVU bonus rate. Alternatively, set a separate procedure bonus pool with a lower threshold."
Employer-funded malpractice tail coverage
Claims-made policy with no employer tail obligation specified. NY academic neurology tail typically runs $25,000–$45,000. The default rule attaches the tail cost to the physician at separation — when liquidity is lowest.
"Add language that the employer funds tail coverage upon any separation event, including without-cause termination, voluntary resignation with standard notice, and retirement."
Inpatient consult per-encounter differential
Inpatient neurology consults carry higher acuity, documentation load, and after-hours follow-up than office visits. The contract bundles inpatient consults into the same wRVU pool with no acuity adjustment. Heavy inpatient consult quarters generate uncompensated overnight phone follow-up.
"Add a per-consult differential of $50 for any inpatient consult performed outside standard business hours (6 PM to 6 AM weekdays, all day weekends and holidays), credited in addition to wRVU value."
Sleep study and EEG reading volume cap
The contract assigns sleep study reads and ambulatory EEG interpretation at flat base compensation, with no cap on monthly volume. Without a cap, the workload can grow unbounded as the department assigns more studies without corresponding pay increase.
"Add a monthly volume cap on sleep studies and ambulatory EEG (e.g., 40 sleep studies / 60 EEG reads per month), with any volume above the cap compensated at $20/sleep study and $35/EEG read."
Clause Analysis
""Physician shall participate in the inpatient stroke-call rotation on a 1-in-7 basis. Stroke-call shifts cover the period from 5:00 PM to 7:00 AM weekdays and continuous coverage on weekends and holidays. Stroke-call coverage is considered part of Physician's general professional obligation as an academic faculty neurologist and is not separately compensated.""
The clause assigns approximately 52 stroke-call shifts per year (1 in 7 weeknight rotations plus weekend assignments) at zero incremental compensation. Stroke call in an academic neurology setting carries acute decision-making liability (tPA window, mechanical thrombectomy eligibility), in-house response requirements, and substantial overnight volume. The 2025 national neurology daily call rate is $898 at median and $1,185 at P75, with weekend rates at $1,185 and holiday rates at $1,200 at median. The clause is the single largest dollar item in the contract.
Negotiate a stroke-call differential of $1,000/shift, OR convert to a "free clinical time" model where each stroke-call shift earns a 0.5 day of subsequent protected non-clinical time, OR exempt from rotation entirely with a base-rate increase of $40,000/year.
""Physician shall earn a productivity bonus of sixty-five dollars ($65) per work RVU for each wRVU personally generated in excess of four thousand five hundred (4,500) wRVUs per academic year. wRVUs from all clinical activities, including office visits, inpatient consults, and procedures, are included in the calculation.""
The 4,500 wRVU threshold sits below the national median production of 5,059 wRVUs for general neurology — a median producer clears it by 559 wRVUs and earns roughly $36,000 in bonus, so reachability is not the problem. The structural problems are the rate and the bundling: every wRVU above the threshold pays $65 against the $70.19 national median $/wRVU, and an epilepsy-focused neurologist generating 5,770 wRVUs (the procedure-archetype median) earns the same per-wRVU credit on monitoring procedures as on office visits, even though procedure encounters drive additional technical-fee revenue the hospital retains.
Two changes: (1) Align the marginal rate to the $70.19 national median — worth about $2,900/year at median production, widening with every wRVU above the threshold. (2) Add a procedure-specific multiplier of 1.5× for EMG, EEG, IOM, and video EEG monitoring CPT codes. At 5,200 wRVUs with a 60% procedure mix, the multiplier moves the annual bonus from $45,500 to $59,150.
""Employer shall provide claims-made professional liability coverage with limits of $1,300,000 per occurrence and $3,900,000 aggregate during the term of Physician's employment.""
NY-typical coverage limits ($1.3M / $3.9M reflects required NY hospital privileging minimums). No mention of tail coverage on separation. NY claims-made tail for academic neurology typically runs $25,000–$45,000 — a meaningful exposure at job transition.
Add explicit language: "Upon separation for any reason except for-cause termination involving moral turpitude, Employer shall fund tail coverage at Employer's expense to maintain coverage for all claims arising from incidents during the employment period."
""Employer shall pay Physician a sign-on bonus of forty thousand dollars ($40,000), payable within thirty (30) days of the Commencement Date. If Physician's employment terminates for any reason during the first twelve (12) months, Physician shall repay the sign-on bonus in full; if employment terminates during months thirteen (13) through thirty-six (36), Physician shall repay a pro-rata portion based on completed months of service.""
The $40,000 sign-on bonus carries a 3-year clawback with full repayment for any separation in year 1 — including an employer-initiated without-cause termination on 90 days notice under Section 8.2. As written, the employer could end the relationship in month 10 and still demand the entire $40,000 back. The pro-rata schedule for months 13–36 is standard; the year-1 full-repayment trigger paired with a mutual without-cause clause is the exposure.
Add a carve-out: no repayment obligation if the employer terminates without cause or the physician terminates for an uncured employer breach. Second ask: convert the year-1 trigger to the same pro-rata schedule as months 13–36, so repayment is proportional from month 1.
""Physician shall allocate ten percent (10%) of effort to non-clinical academic activities, including research, teaching, and committee service. Academic time shall not be subject to productivity wRVU expectations or bonus threshold calculations.""
10% academic time with protection from wRVU calculations is favorable. The clause means the 4,500 wRVU threshold is measured against 90% clinical FTE, not 100%, which slightly improves bonus economics. The protection is well-drafted.
No changes. The 10% academic time is a clear benefit and the wRVU protection is correctly drafted. Consider asking for 15% academic time if research expectations are stated elsewhere in the offer letter.
""Either party may terminate this Agreement without cause upon ninety (90) days written notice. Upon Physician's termination, all academic appointments shall terminate concurrently.""
90 days notice is within the standard range for academic neurology contracts (often 90–180 days). The concurrent termination of academic appointments is standard — it prevents the awkward situation of a former clinical faculty member retaining hospital privileges.
No urgent changes. Consider asking for 120 days for the physician's benefit to allow for orderly patient transition in subspecialty practices (epilepsy, movement disorders).
Non-Compete
MODERATEExists
Yes
Radius
25 miles
Duration
12 months
Governing State
New York
Enforceability
Moderately Enforceable
Landmark cases: Reed, Roberts Associates, Inc. v. Strauman (1976, New York Court of Appeals (40 N.Y.2d 303)): Foundational NY case limiting enforceable employer interests to trade secrets/confidential client lists or truly unique/extraordinary services and disfavoring restraints on ordinary competition; underpins the physician-favorable reading (restrained employee prevailed).
New York enforces reasonable physician non-competes (Enforceable, common-law; courts lean physician-favorable). Treat this as binding and negotiate the scope down now. Your 25 miles / 12 months terms sit within the range New York courts have upheld, so a court would likely enforce them — your leverage is to narrow them before signing. Governing law: None (common law; no physician-specific statute in force as of June 2026).
Malpractice Insurance
MODERATEType
claims-made
Coverage Limits
$1,300,000 per occurrence / $3,900,000 aggregate (NY hospital-privileging minimum)
Tail Coverage
Not addressed in contract. Default rule attaches tail obligation to physician at separation.
Tail Cost Estimate
NY academic neurology tail typically runs $25,000–$45,000 under claims-made policies. Higher in stroke-focused or epilepsy-monitoring practice given case severity.
Two changes: (1) Add employer-funded tail on any separation except for-cause termination involving moral turpitude. (2) Add consent-to-settle language with reasonableness standard.
Termination Provisions
LOWWithout-Cause Notice
90 days mutual
With-Cause Provisions
For-cause includes: (a) loss of NY medical license; (b) loss of hospital privileges; (c) loss of DEA registration; (d) felony conviction; (e) material breach uncured after 30 days notice; (f) loss of academic appointment by faculty senate action.
Physician Rights
Limited. Physician may terminate for: (a) Employer material breach uncured after 30 days notice; (b) sale, merger, or change of control. No express right to terminate for substantial schedule modification, material reduction in compensation, or loss of department chair (relevant in academic settings where chair changes can materially affect research support).
Extend physician termination rights to include: (a) loss of department chair or division chief, with 90-day notice; (b) material change in research support or laboratory access; (c) substantial schedule modification (>20% clinical time change).
Benefits & Leave
LOWHealth Insurance
Group health plan effective first day. Employer pays 85% of physician premium and 65% of dependent. At or above NY academic market standard.
CME
$4,000/year allowance and 7 CME days. Typical for academic neurology.
PTO
5 weeks (25 days) PTO + 6 federal holidays + 10% academic time. The 2025 national neurology median vacation allowance is 240 hours (30 days); 25 days sits just below it before counting holidays and protected academic time.
Retirement
403(b) with 5% employer match after 1 year, plus access to 457(b) supplemental. At NY academic market standard.
Disability
Group long-term disability covering 60% of base salary, after 90-day elimination period. Own-occupation supplemental not included — meaningful gap for procedure-focused neurologists.
Malpractice
Claims-made, $1.3M / $3.9M, employer-paid during active employment. Tail not addressed (see Malpractice section).
Negotiation Approach
Lead with stroke call — it is the largest concrete dollar item ($52,000/year at midpoint differential) and the most defensible ask given the well-documented academic market for stroke-call differentials. Stack tail coverage and procedure-bonus separation behind it. Treat the non-compete reduction and termination right additions as secondary asks that cost the employer little.
Opening Move
Email the division chief and faculty recruiter: "I want to flag three items in the contract that touch on academic neurology market norms. They are stroke-call differential, procedure-specific wRVU credit, and tail coverage. I have peer-academic comparison data on each. Can we set 30 minutes to walk through?" The framing as "academic market norms" — not "I want more pay" — anchors the conversation in benchmarks the department understands.
Key Principles
- In academic settings, division chiefs respond better to peer-academic data than to specialty-generic benchmarks. Reference comparable institutions directly.
- Lead with stroke call — it is the cleanest single ask with the largest dollar impact and the strongest precedent at peer academic centers.
- Procedure-specific multiplier is the second-largest ask but requires more education for the chief; sequence it after the stroke-call differential is anchored.
- In academic NY, the non-compete is rarely a deal-breaker but tail coverage is. Sequence the asks accordingly.
Sequencing
- 1Email opening with three framing topics
- 230-min call: lead with stroke call, then procedure bonus, then tail
- 3Receive counter in writing within 5 business days
- 4One round of refinement on remaining items (non-compete, termination rights)
- 5Final redlined contract for execution before residency-graduation onboarding deadline
Negotiation Priorities
Financial Impact
$52,000/year at $1,000/shift across ~52 stroke-call shifts — $156,000 over a 3-year term. At a lower negotiated rate of $750/shift, $39,000/year and $117,000 over 3 years. Largest concrete dollar item in this contract.
Current Terms
1-in-7 stroke-call rotation at base rate (zero incremental compensation)
The Ask
$1,000/shift stroke-call differential in addition to base salary, paid monthly in arrears
Fallback
$750/shift differential ($39,000/year), or exemption from the stroke rotation paired with a base increase of at least $35,000.
Walk-Away Point
Without any stroke-call differential, the effective hourly rate for in-house stroke coverage falls below comparable hospitalist nocturnist pay. If employer refuses entirely, alternative is to negotiate exemption from rotation with a base-rate increase of at least $35,000.
Say this
“I'm taking 52 in-house stroke-call shifts a year at base rate — zero incremental compensation for the highest-acuity work in this contract. I'd like a $1,000 per-shift stroke-call differential, paid monthly in arrears. That aligns my call pay with what comparable in-house overnight coverage already earns.”
Financial Impact
For a procedure-focused neurologist at 5,200 wRVUs/year with 60% procedure mix, the multiplier moves the annual bonus from $45,500 to $59,150 — $13,650/year and roughly $41,000 over a 3-year term. Rate alignment to the $70.19 median adds about $2,900/year at median production (5,059 wRVUs), roughly $8,700 over 3 years.
Current Terms
All wRVUs bundled at $65/wRVU above 4,500 threshold
The Ask
1.5× multiplier for EMG, EEG, IOM, and video EEG wRVUs (CPT 95860–95887, 95812–95830, 95940–95941); marginal rate aligned to the $70.19 national median $/wRVU
Fallback
Marginal rate aligned to the $70.19 national median at the existing 4,500 threshold — about $2,900/year at median production, more at procedure-archetype volumes.
Walk-Away Point
If the department refuses procedure multipliers, rate alignment to the $70.19 national median is the floor — about $2,900/year at median production, scaling with every wRVU above the threshold.
Say this
“Sixty percent of my wRVUs come from EMG, EEG, and IOM — procedure work the flat $65 rate undervalues. I'd like a 1.5x multiplier on those procedure codes and the marginal rate aligned to the $70.19 national median. At my production that's the difference between a $45,500 bonus and $59,150.”
Financial Impact
$25,000–$45,000 contingent liability eliminated — equivalent to roughly $8,300–$15,000 per year of insurance value across a 3-year term. Realized only at separation but a meaningful hedge against forced job-change scenarios.
Current Terms
Silent — tail defaults to physician at separation
The Ask
Employer-funded tail on any separation except for-cause termination involving moral turpitude
Fallback
A tail-reserve stipend — $5,000/year vesting over 5 years — so the tail obligation is pre-funded even if the employer will not commit to paying it outright.
Walk-Away Point
If employer refuses any tail commitment, alternative is to negotiate a tail-coverage stipend earned over time (e.g., $5,000/year deposited into a tail-reserve account that vests over 5 years).
Say this
“The contract is silent on tail, which defaults a $25,000 to $45,000 liability onto me at separation. I'd like employer-funded tail on any separation except a for-cause termination. This is standard risk allocation for employed neurologists, and it costs you nothing unless the relationship ends.”
Financial Impact
Not directly compensable. Optionality value: the difference between being free to take a competing position in NYC versus being forced to relocate to New Jersey or further. Conservatively $30,000–$80,000 of optionality over the 12 months following separation — an exposure that persists through all 3 years of the term, since the clock starts whenever employment ends.
Current Terms
25 miles, 12 months, single stroke-ED carve-out
The Ask
10-15 miles, 12 months, plus carve-outs for locum tenens, telemedicine, and EMG-only practice
Fallback
Keep the 25-mile radius but add carve-outs for locum tenens, telemedicine, and EMG-only practice — preserving income options that do not compete for your stroke volume.
Walk-Away Point
New York courts have upheld physician non-competes in the 5–25 mile / 6–24 month range, and 25 miles / 12 months sits inside it — treat the clause as binding and fix it before signing. 15-mile / 12-month is target; expanded carve-outs are acceptable substitute.
Say this
“A 25-mile, 12-month restriction in this market effectively forces relocation. I'd like the radius at 10 to 15 miles with carve-outs for locums, telemedicine, and EMG-only work. None of those compete with this department's stroke program, and the leverage to fix this exists only before I sign.”
Generate Counter-Proposal
What this section does
- Generates a full counter-proposal letter in your chosen tone (warm or firm), addressed to the employer, citing specific specialty benchmarks and your negotiation priorities.
- Lets you select which priorities to include, and supports both new-offer and renegotiation letter types with an optional contract start date.
- Output is editable, copyable, and prints to PDF alongside the report — ready to send, or revise it first.
Unlimited Q&A
Example question
Unlimited Q&A — ask follow-up questions about your analysis
Ask about any clause, negotiate strategy, what specific language to request, or what a term means in practice. Answers are grounded in your actual contract text and benchmarks for your specialty. Yours forever — come back any time.
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