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Twice a month, get clear, smart tips to help you keep more money, build wealth, and make taxes easier for 1099 CRNAs.
Bill White:
Welcome to Money Moves for CRNAs — the podcast created specifically for 1099 CRNAs who want clarity, confidence, and control over their money. This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not personalized tax or financial advice. Here’s your host, Randy Larkin, with Atlanta Tax Planner.
Randy Larkin:
Hi there, this is Randy Larkin.
A higher hourly rate does not always mean a better 1099 CRNA contract. That may sound strange. But a $225-an-hour contract can sometimes create more tax problems than a $200-an-hour contract. Why? Because the rate is only one number.
The real result depends on the facts attached to that contract: where you work, where you live, how long the assignment lasts, how travel is handled, whether another state is involved, and whether your estimated taxes need to change.
In the last episode, we talked about how the same CRNA contract can create a different tax result when the facts change. Today, we are taking that one step further. Because for a 1099 CRNA, the hourly rate is the headline. But the after-tax result is the story.
When a CRNA looks at a new contract, the hourly rate usually gets the most attention. That makes sense. It is easy to compare. But for a 1099 CRNA, the rate does not tell the whole story.
One contract may involve travel. Another may involve multiple states. Another may include reimbursements that are not fully understood. Another may start as temporary, but later get extended.
So the better question is not only, “What is the hourly rate?” The better question is, “What facts are attached to this contract?”
Those facts can matter before tax season ever arrives. The work may look the same. The pay may look better. The schedule may look fine. But the tax result may not be the same. That is where CRNAs can get surprised.
They accept the contract, do the work, collect the money, and later realize the contract had tax facts they did not recognize soon enough. Those are not questions you want to answer after the year is over. By then, the facts have already happened, and some planning opportunities may already be gone.
Location is one example. A 1099 CRNA working in New Mexico may be thinking only about state income tax. But New Mexico can also raise gross receipts tax questions connected to 1099 income. Kentucky can surprise CRNAs also. A CRNA may know about Kentucky income tax, but depending on the city, there may also be a local occupational tax.
The point is not to memorize New Mexico or Kentucky tax rules. The point is simpler: location matters. Those are the kinds of issues that may not show up when you are only comparing hourly rates. And sometimes the location attached to a contract can change the real after-tax result.
Travel can matter too. Reimbursements can matter. Assignment length can matter. Records can matter. And estimated taxes can matter.
So when you compare contracts, do not only compare the rate. Compare the facts behind the rate. Could another state be involved? Could travel or reimbursements matter? Could your estimated taxes need to change? Do you understand enough to know when you need help?
That is what tax readiness is about. It is not about becoming your own tax expert. It is about noticing issues early enough to avoid expensive surprises later.
The takeaway is simple: before you accept or extend a contract, look past the rate and ask what tax facts come with it.
That is why we created the free 1099 CRNA Tax Readiness Review. It is not a generic deduction checklist. It helps you look at how you are being paid, where you are working, what your contract says, and whether travel, reimbursements, multistate issues, records, or estimated taxes need a closer look.
The review helps you see where you are confident, and where you may be guessing. As you go through it, pay attention to how often you think: “I’m not sure.” “I need to check on that.” “I did not realize that mattered.” Or, “I probably need help with this.” That is exactly what the review is designed to reveal.
You can download the free 1099 CRNA Tax Readiness Review through the link in the description. And if you go through it and realize there are several areas you are unsure about, the next step may be a CRNA Tax Strategy Session, where we help turn those unanswered questions into a proactive tax plan.
Because the highest hourly rate is not always the best after tax result. That is tax readiness.
Bill White:
Thanks for listening to Money Moves for CRNAs. New episodes drop twice a month. See you soon.