How Much QME Work Pays, & Factors that Influence How Much Physicians Make
- Nisha Mehta, MD
- 5 days ago
- 6 min read
While many physicians are interested in becoming a Qualified Medical Evaluator (QME) to evaluate worker's compensation cases in California, there is an opportunity cost to getting started with this side gig, as it requires taking an exam and training to become certified. As such, before committing to this pathway, physicians are rightfully often curious what their earnings potential is. While there’s a typical earnings range per case, the answer to how much you can make doing QME work depends on the overall volume of cases. Several factors can influence this, which we look into below. We also provide doctors with what high, medium, and low annual earnings may look like.
We often work with companies that want to connect with physicians interested in getting involved with QME work. These companies can help walk you through the QME process and provide training and resources. If you would like to be alerted of QME opportunities matching your interests, sign up for our chart review matching database (you must be a member of our physician only Physician Side Gigs group to access, but it’s completely free to join).You can also sign up for our PSG weekly newsletter, where we publish current and upcoming opportunities.
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How much does QME work pay?
California has a set fee schedule based on the work being performed. A standard case, including the interview, record review, and report typically pays around $2,000-$2,500. When working through a third-party company, physicians often report making about 50%-60% of that amount, which comes out to about $1,250-$1,800 per case.
When a psychiatric or psychological evaluation is the focus of the evaluation, the fee paid can be double.
For medical reviews with extensive documentation, there is often compensation paid per additional page over a set standard amount, such as 200 pages. This additional amount is typically in the range of $1.50 to $1.80 per page.
If there is an interpreter required for the case, QMEs can be paid an additional 10%.
While this gives an idea of what each QME case pays, overall pay depends on how many cases you complete. Multiple factors influence how many cases you may expect to take in a year, and we cover these individually below. As a general range, we’ve heard reports of physicians making tens of thousands all the way up to six figures annually. We look into this in more detail below.
Factors that influence how much you can make doing QME work
There are four main variables that you can use to estimate (and in some cases, control) how busy you’ll be as a Qualified Medical Evaluator.
Your specialty
Your location(s)
Your availability
Your reputation
We look at each of these separately.
How your specialty influences what you make as a Qualified Medical Evaluator
Your specialty is perhaps the most important factor that influences the volume of cases you may be able to get, and thus how much you can potentially make.
Specialties that tend to have the most opportunities include:
Cardiology
ENT
Gastroenterology
Neurology
Ophthalmology
Orthopedics
Pain medicine
PM&R
Psychiatry
Pulmonology
Specialties that tend to have a mid-range of demand include:
Dermatology
Endocrinology
General surgery
Internal medicine
Rheumatology
Urology
Specialties that may have a lower demand include:
Anesthesiology
Emergency medicine
Family medicine
Neurosurgery
OB/GYN
Pediatrics
While this last group of specialties may have a lower volume of case work, this doesn’t mean this side gig isn’t a good potential fit if you’re looking for additional income. Companies who work with doctors for QME opportunities can work with physicians in lower demand specialties.
If you’re interested in QME work and you’re in any of the specialties above, you can sign up for our free chart review matching database (physician only) and let us know you’re interested in QME work so we can help match you to relevant opportunities and companies who work with physicians for QME work.
How your clinic location(s) impact how much QMEs make
While QME work is typically in California, certain metropolitan areas within the state tend to have a greater volume of injured workers who need evaluation, and thus may be able to offer a higher number of cases.
Each QME can list up to ten locations where they are willing to evaluate individuals for cases. Where these locations are can impact how much you may be able to make, as proximity to where the inquired worker lives is taken into consideration during the QME selection process. Having several clinics in different areas can help increase your chances of getting a higher case volume.
Given that case volume is dependent on location, a physician’s willingness to drive or fly to different areas of California can also provide more potential opportunities. Some physicians fly to a specific clinic location in the morning and return in the evening, providing a day’s block of available time for scheduling. Others opt to travel to a clinic location and stay for 2 or 3 days to see patients in higher volume locations.
Popular markets for QME work include:
Bakersfield
Los Angeles
Sacramento
San Diego
Your availability can drive your QME income
How much you want to work is always important to consider when assessing how much you can make. If you’re in a specialty that tends to have more opportunities and live in a high volume location, there’s a chance you may have more cases available than you want to actually do.
Regardless of how much you want to work, your availability to see injured workers as a QME also factors into your earnings potential. There’s flexibility in scheduling, and you often have about 90 days to schedule once you’ve been assigned a case, but you still need the time available to schedule the evaluation. If you only have one or two days available a month or a few hours a week around your normal clinical schedule, you can end up with a lower volume than if you had more availability.
Your reputation as a QME can help secure more cases
The quality and timeliness of your reports, as well as your understanding of the legal aspect, also factor into how many cases you can get. To be selected for a case, QMEs are put on a panel and through a review process. Three potential QMEs are selected for the panel, and both the applicant’s attorney and the defense attorney have the ability to strike a candidate from consideration. The remaining QME has the opportunity to evaluate the case, so your reputation and your previous work can influence the selection process.
What doesn’t influence how much you make
How well you market yourself as a QME does not impact how much you can make. In fact, marketing your QME side gig is illegal.
Example annual earnings as a QME
To put these factors into perspective, we asked a company who works with physicians for QME work for example annual income ranges, understanding that all the factors above can influence what a “typical” income might look like.
Higher earning potential:
15-30 cases per month
Total yearly: $180,000-$432,000
Middle earning potential:
5-15 cases per month
Total yearly: $60,000-$216,000
Lower earning potential:
0-1 cases per month
Total yearly: $0-$14,000
While there are no guarantees, we hope this gives you a rough idea as you consider becoming a QME.
What’s the hourly rate physicians make for QME work?
Your effective hourly rate for QME work depends on how long you spend on each case, which can depend on factors such as:
Your experience level
Your understanding of the AMA guides
The preparation required
Cases can range anywhere from about 30 minutes to 3 hours. When you first start out, expect it to take longer as you familiarize yourself with the process, regulations, and requirements for evaluations, reports, etc. Once you get experience, it typically takes less time.
If your cases, on average, take an hour, then your hourly rate could be around $1,500 per hour (or $3,000 per hour in the case of psych evals).
Conclusion
QME work can offer anywhere from a small supplemental side income to a substantial six-figure amount, depending on how intentionally you approach it and the volume of cases you’re able to get (and handle). While certain factors, such as your specialty, you don’t have much control over, physicians who have greater availability and who are willing to travel to high demand areas have the potential of increasing their earnings. In addition, the more established you become, the quicker you may be able to complete cases, which can increase your effective hourly rate.
Additional QME resources for physicians
Learn more about QME work:
Sign up for our free chart review opportunity matching database and PSG weekly newsletter for alerts of opportunities to become a QME.