Geographic Distribution News

"Following the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010, it is likely that more people will enter the healthcare system to receive medical treatment. Unfortunately, more patients create the need for greater numbers of physicians, which is something many states do not have."

"Rural health providers across the nation will receive more than $10.4 million to provide direct health care services to their communities.  The funding announced today by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will be used to meet a broad range of health care needs in rural areas, from health promotion and disease prevention to expanding oral and mental health services."

"Using data from the 2010 American Medical Association Physician Masterfile, the authors identified all 1,757 graduates from three RPs (Jefferson Medical College's Physician Shortage Area Program; University of Minnesota Medical School Duluth; University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford's Rural Medical Education Program) practicing in their respective states, and all 6,474 IMGs practicing in the same states and graduating the same years. The relative likelihoods of RP graduates versus IMGs practicing rural family medicine and rural primary care were compared."

"Although the Oregon AFP has always stressed the importance of supporting and strengthening the state's rural primary care workforce, that message frequently has been lost in a state that is dominated by large urban areas, such as Portland, Salem, Eugene and Medford."

"A relatively obscure observance no doubt passed unnoticed by most Georgians, especially those who didn’t read the Macon Telegraph. For all who missed it -- and that’s probably most of us -- Thursday was Rural Health Day in Georgia."

"Convincing a medical student, sometimes tens of thousands of dollars in debt, to take a lower-paying job or move to a low-income, rural community can be a tough sell. So perhaps it’s not surprising that many new physicians gravitate toward high-paying specialties or urban sprawls with modern-day conveniences."

"An initiative designed to combat a shortage of doctors in rural Oklahoma is headed to the state Legislature."

"Healthcare providers awarded grants of as much as $500,000 to support physicians who practice medicine in underserved areas of New York state, officials say."

"For the first time in modern history, more people are now living in cities than in rural areas. That includes doctors, leaving many small communities with no primary care physician. However, a new program at Kansas University may change that."