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September is Women in Medicine Month, and earlier this week, on Tuesday, August 30, MSDC’s Gender Equity Task Force held its initial meeting. The Task Force is co-chaired by Women in Medicine Section Co-chair Dr. Jaya Kasaraneni of Unity Health Care and Advocacy Committee Chair Dr. Klint Peebles of the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group and was formed by the MSDC Board of Directors at its February 2022 meeting.

The Task Force is charged with issuing a report, "detailing its positions on gender equity in medicine and provide tangible recommendations on how MSDC can further promote the advancement of this cause in medicine including, but not limited to, suggestions for programming, initiatives, and resources for members and the medical community at large."

Despite the increased number of women physicians, there is a significant gender pay gap in medicine. Studies show that women physicians make less than men, regardless of race/ethnicity and specialty.

• According to a brief coauthored by DC Board of Medicine Chair Dr. Andrea Anderson, across every racial/ethnic group, male physicians earned more than female physicians.
• These disparities add up over time. A widely publicized study calculated that women physicians make $2 million less than men over their lifetime.
• Women physicians make less than men whether they are in primary or specialty care, with women in primary care making the least of all physicians.
• Physician mothers face a special set of challenges with barriers to pumping while at work. 

These disparities, coupled with the pandemic, have taken a toll on wellbeing and have led to an exodus of women physicians from the workforce.

Although the disparity is clear, the cause and solutions are not. In a typical chicken/egg conundrum lower starting pay can have lifelong impact. Pay transparency is seen as a way to shine a light on pay disparities and close the gender gap, and a LinkedIn study found that women are more open than men to sharing pay information.

The Task Force will work diligently to gather data, review policy, and analyze the topic. Fortunately, work has already been done by state medical societies and the MSDC, such as convening the Task Force and committing to shine a light on the issue.  If you have questions regarding the Task Force or an interest in its work, contact Pia Duryea at duryea@msdc.org.