Oregon is a high-demand locum market with a regulatory profile that has shifted significantly in the past year. Active IMLC membership, a sweeping non-compete ban for medical licensees effective June 2025, full NP and CRNA practice autonomy, and persistent rural shortages across a large and geographically diverse state create real locum opportunity — particularly outside…
Ohio is a large, accessible locum market with one of the most favorable income tax profiles in the Midwest. A top marginal rate of 3.75%, active IMLC membership, and a corporate practice of medicine doctrine that the Ohio State Medical Board has effectively abolished create a physician-friendly operating environment. The tradeoffs — physician non-competes remain…
Minnesota is a high-demand locum market with a distinctive profile. Long-standing IMLC membership, a non-compete ban that extends to independent contractors, full NP and CRNA practice autonomy, and a deep rural healthcare infrastructure — 77 critical access hospitals across a vast and medically underserved rural landscape — create consistent locum opportunity well beyond the Twin…
Michigan’s locum tenens market got meaningfully better in March 2026. Governor Whitmer signed HB 5455 on March 26, 2026 — Public Act 6 of 2026 — confirming Michigan’s continued participation in the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact in a down-to-the-wire legislative move that preserved the IMLC pathway before a prior sunset-based withdrawal could take effect. Combined…
Colorado is one of the more physician-friendly locum markets in the Rocky Mountain West. Full IMLC membership with SPL eligibility, a near-total non-compete ban now in effect for physicians and APRNs — including a prohibition on liquidated damages and buyout fees — full NP and CRNA practice autonomy, and a flat 4.4% state income tax…
Washington state offers locum tenens physicians a compelling combination: no state income tax on 2026 earnings, full NP and CRNA practice autonomy, strong rural demand across a large and geographically diverse state, and a non-compete landscape heading toward a near-total ban by mid-2027. The tradeoffs are real — no IMLC membership means standard DOH licensing,…
Locum tenens physicians who work across multiple states in a single year face a tax filing obligation that most employed physicians never encounter — and that most generic tax guides do not adequately address. Every state where you physically perform clinical work creates a potential state income tax obligation, regardless of where you live, where…
One of the most significant financial advantages available to locum tenens physicians is the ability to contribute substantially more to tax-advantaged retirement accounts than their employed counterparts. As a 1099 independent contractor, you are both the employee and the employer — which means you can make contributions from both sides of that relationship, dramatically increasing…
Choosing a locum tenens agency is one of the most consequential decisions in your locum career — and most physicians make it with almost no framework for evaluation. Agencies are not interchangeable. They differ in margin structure, specialty focus, contract terms, credentialing speed, and how they treat physicians when an assignment goes wrong. This guide…
The housing and meal stipend is one of the most financially significant components of a locum tenens compensation package — and one of the most misunderstood. When structured correctly and supported by the right facts, stipends are tax-free, which can add tens of thousands of dollars in effective annual compensation relative to an equivalent taxable…