The primary care shortage will only worsen. Are insurers listening?
“The reason there’s a real threat of a shortage of primary care physicians is that they are paid much less than other physicians,” says Ann S. O’Malley MD, MPH, a senior researcher the Center for Studying Health System Change. “Their incomes are lower than surgeons and other specialists, and a lot of what primary care physicians do is not compensated. The time they spend coordinating care on the phone, talking to social workers, and talking to specialists about care provided to the same patient just does not get compensated.“So between their lower baseline salary and the way our reimbursement system works, it’s a much less attractive field for medical students to choose.”
