Facts about physician shortages
The American Medical Association (AMA) and the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) have predicted a severe shortage of primary care physicians (PCPs) over the next decade, as the demand is outstripping supply rapidly. Nearly one in five Americans -- 56 million individuals -- are medically disenfranchised, meaning they have inadequate or no access to primary care physicians because of the shortage of such physicians . Compared with most developed countries, the United States also has a low overall physician-to-population ratio. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and
Development ranks the United States 13th globally with 264 doctors per 100,000 people.(Greece ranks the first, with 448 doctors per 100,000 people) In a position paper published last April, the AMA suggested addressing the shortage of physicians in underserved areas by international medical graduates (IMGs). The position paper states that one out of every five adequately served non-metropolitan counties would become “underserved”, if all IMGs currently in primary care practice were to be removed.
Last June, the Assocation of American Medical Colleges called for an end to the cap on graduate medical education positions reimbursed by Medicare and does not recommend a decrease in IMGs. The explicit goal of the new policy is to increase the number of physicians available to serve Americans which cannot be accomplished without an increase in residency training.
Previous measures at addressing these shortages have been slow in addressing these needs. The Immigration Act of 1990 introduced the National Interest Waiver (NIW) program to provide certain foreign professionals with advanced degrees, including foreign physicians (MDs) a pathway to acquire Green Cards. The NIW requires that qualifying foreign physicians fulfill a 5-year service commitment to a medically underserved area (MUA) or a health-professional shortage area (HPSA) prior to obtaining Green Cards.
An article published by the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM) estimates the current national supply of endocrinologists to be 12% lower than current demand, and expects the trend to worsen if no action is taken.
Sources:
1. AAFP Report “Access Denied- A Look at America’s Disenfranchised
2. AMA position paper
3. Source:
http://www.aamc.org/workforce/workforcecharts.pdf
4. Robert A. Rizza, Robert A. Vigersky, Helena W. Rodbard, Paul W. Ladenson, William F. Young, Jr., Martin I. Surks, Richard Kahn, and Paul F. Hogan: A Model to Determine Workforce Needs for Endocrinologists in the United States Until 2020, J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., May 2003; 88: 1979 - 1987
