Projected shortage of priamry care doctors

KFF Health News reported on a long-term trend that the US lacks enough primary care doctors: "The Association of American Medical Colleges projects a shortage of 20,200 to 40,400 primary care doctors by 2036. This means many Americans will lose out on the benefits of primary care, which research shows improves health, leading to fewer hospital visits and less chronic illness."

The article explains that other specialties pay more (in the case of orthopedics and dermatology, about twice as much), and that other specialties garner more respect. The salary differential could be meaningful for some who start their careers heavily in debt because of medical school. Some medical schools now eliminate tuition, which might give some students more freedom to choose. However, free tuition seems unlikely to be enough to balance out the field. Instead, a professor of medicine conveyed that "the U.S. health care system must address the low pay and lack of support."