Physician Shortage, Pt 2
Side Note: We have seen time and time again what happens in rural parts of the country when there is a shortage of physicians. This case of an OBGYN in Illinois is a perfect example of why we need to take steps to prevent things like this from happening. We know that the Boomers are retiring, which is one of the reasons President Obama pushed his healthcare bill through Congress. However, because this bill didn’t address certain issues that most practicing physicians think are important, physicians were not happy with it. Organizations like Docs4PatientCare fought long and hard for real med mal reform to be included in the bill. At the end of the day, it wasn’t, and it left a lot of doctors, particularly the higher premium specialty physicians, such as OBGYNs, and Surgeons, wondering what was going to happen to them in the frivolous environment in which we live. How are they expected to set up a medical practice in a rural area, have a limited number in their patient pool, and pay $100,000+ for their med mal insurance?
We need to address these issues before they spiral out of control, and if the numbers in this article are correct, then we will continue down this road where some folks are without certain types of care. We need to address the pressing issues that physicians face today, to avoid gaps in critical types of healthcare in the future. This is why MyMedicalMalpracticeInsurance.com fights for Tort Reform. We have seen how it has lowered med mal costs for Texas physicians. Because of the lower med-mal policy costs, doctors are flocking to Texas to open up medical practices. Boomers and other folks who need specific types of healthcare are ok in Texas, but what about your state? Especially the states in which physicians pay the most. We have historic medical malpractice insurance rate data to backup these claims, just take a look:
Illinois Med Mal Coverage
Ohio Med Mal Coverage
Florida Med Mal Coverage
Texas Med Mal Coverage
California Med Mal Coverage
New York Med Mal Coverage
If you want to view any other state, click the following link and view Med Mal Rates by State.
If you are a practicing physician, or run a medical group, and are looking to lower your med mal insurance costs, you can request a free med mal policy quote today.
Physician Shortage to Quadruple Within Decade, AAMC Says
Karen Cheung, for HealthLeaders Media, January 4, 2011
The numbers do not look promising.
According to an Association of American Colleges report, U.S. specialties will reach a shortage of 91,500 doctors by 2020. The AAMC predicts Americans will need an estimated 45,000 primary care physicians and 46,000 surgeons and medical specialists.
