Ranking: Idaho best place for physicians

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NORWALK, Conn., Oct. 15 (UPI) -- Idaho is the best place to practice medicine because of its low rate of disciplinary actions against doctors, a U.S. ranking indicates.

The Physicians Practice's Best States to Practice ranking found Idaho, Alabama, Texas, Nevada and South Carolina were the top places for doctors to practice by Physicians Practice, which provides physician practice management advice to more than 150,000 physicians and their practice administrators throughout the United States.

Bob Keaveney, editorial director of Physicians Practice, which has been developing its Best States to Practice list since 2003, said Idaho's low cost of living and culture of physician independence make it the best place in America to be a practicing physician for the second straight year.

The Idaho medical board's low rate of disciplinary actions against physicians, its low density of practicing physicians per capita and its relatively friendly malpractice climate were among the reasons that Idaho ranked on top, Keaveney said.

The ranking uses six metrics that are important to physicians, including cost of living, tax burden and the climate for malpractice litigation.

In addition to its annual Best States to Practice article, published in the October issue, and its detailed survey results, Physicians Practice created a clickable map of the United States, where users can find specific data on each state, and an interactive My Best States to Practice tool, where users can manipulate the weights assigned to each metric, Keaveney said.