Hey, doc, have we got a medical group for you.

We've all heard of signing bonuses being offered to athletes and even certain high-tech workers. But did you know that the new skin doctor or orthopedic surgeon in your Sacramento-area medical group may have been wooed here with a bonus?

Some Sacramento hospitals and clinics are desperately trying to attract new physicians, particularly specialists, who are eschewing the city for higher-paying regions elsewhere.

"It's definitely more difficult to bring physicians to the Sacramento area," said Bill Sandberg, executive director of the Sacramento-El Dorado Medical Society. "As people are graduating from medical school, this isn't a place they are attracted to. If they don't have family roots, we find they're not staying long."

Almost everyone agrees the tough recruiting market for physicians in the Sacramento area is a symptom of intense competition among managed-care givers.

"This is a highly managed care environment with reimbursement rates considerably less than elsewhere in the country," Sandberg said. He said many doctors are taking early retirement or leaving the area because of the low payments.

Besides creating …