Transparency Grade: C
Licensed Physicians, MSP Billing Data
What's the data showing?
How many physicians do we have? How many family doctors? It's not a simple question. We can find out how many are licensed to practice by the CPSBC. We can see how many bill MSP for their services (including an approximation of what area they're working in), though many physicians receive part or all of their compensation via other means.
7,685 licensed family physicians
7,532 licensed specialists
85% generated MSP billing data
Sources
CPSBC Annual Report 2024 [source]
MSP Physician Resource Report 2024 [source]
MSP data in Excel compiled from MSP physician resource report
What's the opportunity?
Existing data doesn't provide a complete picture of who is practicing, what they're doing, where they're doing it, and how much they're doing. A more accurate picture is needed to plan.
It's needed to evaluate solutions. If we invest in new medical schools to boost the number of family doctors doing family practice, we need to know how many actually end up doing family practice, not something else. Number of licensed family doctors isn't enough.
What's missing?
Many physicians don't work where you think. Some are in administration and don't see patients. Many family doctors don't do family practice, but dermatology, emergency room, hospitalist, and more. Most are paid all or in part by MSP but that data doesn't include those on contract or paid by other means.