A shortage of doctors is a problem in Arizona and is expected to get worse.
As the state’s population grows, the state’s doctors are getting more gray hairs. By 2024, About a third of Arizona’s doctors According to 2020 data cited by the Association of American Medical Colleges, Arizona ranks 42nd in the nation for active primary care physicians per capita. 2021 report.
To address this problem, 2024 U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Arizona) co-sponsored the bipartisan 2023 Resident Doctor Shortage Reduction Act. He discussed the bill with medical leaders at the University of Arizona School of Medicine in Phoenix on Monday. .
The measure would increase the number of permanent Medicare-supported vacancies in both primary and specialty care by 14,000 over seven years. Medicare helps fund doctors in teaching hospitals, but Medicare support has been capped since the late 1990s, except earlier this year and 2021.
“We have a duty to ensure that every American across the country has access to quality care now and in the future, and that is why Congress needs to act,” Gallego said.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Terry Sewell (Alabama) and referred to the House Ways and Means, Energy and Commerce Committee. The bill must be approved by both committees before House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) can choose to bring it to the House for a vote.
Gallego, who is running for the 2024 Senate, is not a member of the relevant committees, but has previously worked with members of those committees and their staff. This includes other recent legislation he sponsored, such as the Water Infrastructure Modernization Act and the Affordable Payment Arrangements Act for Taxpayers.
Passing the Resident Doctor Shortage Reduction Act is a challenge, but the bill has Republican support. The bill is co-sponsored by 15 Republicans from 10 states, including conservative states such as Oklahoma, Texas, Alabama and Nebraska.
A spokeswoman for Gallego could not comment on Republican leadership’s thinking on this particular bill, but there is bipartisan consensus that more doctors are needed, especially in underserved rural areas. said it seemed to have been obtained.
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Gallego said it’s important to attract these medical professionals early in their careers, as doctors tend to practice where they’ve served as residents.
“We want America’s brightest medical graduates to settle down in Arizona and stay here to serve the Arizona people,” he said.
Gallego acknowledged that addressing the doctor shortage is a long-term process and cannot be solved “overnight,” but said legislation is essential to address the underlying problem.
Arizona has recently taken several other promising initiatives aimed at alleviating the doctor shortage. Arizona State University announced June 1 that it will open its first allopathic medicine school as part of a $30 million effort by the state public university system to fill the shortage of medical workers in Arizona. At the same time, the University of Arizona announced plans to double the number of medical students at its two allopathic medical colleges in Phoenix and Tucson.
“Whether it’s Bisbee or Kingman, Yuma or Tuba City, no part of Arizona should be left behind,” he said. “It’s not possible unless you train your doctors well.”
Arizona’s doctor shortage is particularly acute in rural areas. A 2022 Northern Arizona University survey found that about 20% of Maricopa County residents said access to healthcare was a problem, compared with about 40% of residents outside the state’s most populous counties. .
Dr. Michael Kupferman, senior vice president of physician companies and president of Banner University’s Department of Medicine, said the bill would help reduce inequalities in urban and rural access to healthcare.
“The extension of training training can help address geographic imbalances in the physician workforce and help support rural and underserved communities across the state, including tribal communities. It will be like that,” he said. “Increasing the supply of doctors will increase access to health care services, and it is critical that all Arizona citizens have access to health care services to reduce overall morbidity and mortality.”
The federal government has designated Arizona a health professional shortage area and has designated it to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Said Arizona would need more than 650 general practitioners as of Sept. 30 to lose its current status, but Kufferman said more than 3,600 doctors would be needed by 2030 to meet Arizona’s medical needs. said it needed.
“We know that more than 70% of residents will practice in the communities where they are trained, so this is one of the best tools to address the shortage of doctors in the years to come,” said Kupfermann. .
Sherrill O’Malley, Ph.D., associate dean of medicine at the University of Arizona School of Medicine, said Arizona’s doctor shortage is also extending to specialties.
Arizona’s doctor shortage has been a major issue for Gallego since his days in the Arizona House of Representatives. Gallego was first elected to Congress in 2014.
Gallego was a co-sponsor of the Resident Doctor Shortage Reduction Act. 202Both January 1 and 2019 failed to pass the committee despite Democrats controlling the House. He was also a co-sponsor of the Resident Shortage Reduction Act. 2In 2015, Republicans had a majority in the House, but they were similarly defeated by the committee.
Arizona Republic reporter Stephanie Innes contributed to this report.
Tara Kavalor is a political reporter for the Arizona Republic. She can contact her via her email. tara.kavaler@arizonarepublic.com or on Twitter @kavalertara.
