By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    benefits of using protein powder to build muscles
    Protein Powder for Muscle Mass: Everything You Need to Know
    December 12, 2021
    changes brought on by blockchain in healthcare
    Technology In The Healthcare Industry
    March 28, 2022
    What Does Core Body Temperature Say About Health?
    August 17, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    Media Begin Focus on Next Iteration of ACA
    December 13, 2012
    Washington State Care
    Using Homecare for Positive Change in Healthcare
    August 14, 2017
    Do Electronic Health Records Reduce Malpractice Claims?
    February 2, 2013
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Telemedicine and the PCP Cliff
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Health Reform > Telemedicine and the PCP Cliff
BusinesseHealthHealth ReformPublic Health

Telemedicine and the PCP Cliff

rdowney14
rdowney14
Share
3 Min Read
SHARE

Everyone on Capitol Hill seems focused on the so-called “fiscal cliff” – January 1st.  Not on the radar, though, is the rapidly approaching cliff involving primary care physicians, PCPs.

Everyone on Capitol Hill seems focused on the so-called “fiscal cliff” – January 1st.  Not on the radar, though, is the rapidly approaching cliff involving primary care physicians, PCPs.

According to a new study in the Annals of Family Medicine, when the ball drops in Times Square at midnight on New Year’s Eve 2024, the United States will have a shortage of 52,000 primary care physicians.  That sounds like a long way off – 12 years – but it takes at least four years to finish med school and one or two years to complete a residency.

The federal government and even some state governments are trying to entice med school students to consider primary care as a career, but once they’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to get their medical degrees, most set their sights on the more lucrative specialties.  When you study the financials you can see why.

More Read

medicare part e
When Will Medicare Part E Transform Healthcare?
How Would You Fix Healthcare? – Question and Answers.
Clinical Trials Could Get More Help From Social Media
Will Accountable Care be the Final Straw for US Economy and Healthcare system?
Covering the Needs of Patients in Nizhny Novgorod

An Academic Medicine study suggests the benchmark for whether a newly trained physician can make it in primary care is a college loan debt of $160,000 or less.  Sounds like a lot, but nearly one in four 2011 graduates of private medical schools owed more than $250,000 the day they wore their caps and gowns.

Medical Economics reports these young docs will probably have to “live in a low-cost area or engage in some type of nonstandard loan repayment plan to avoid incurring additional debt in the decade after graduation.”  Now there’s something to look forward to!

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has typically dragged its bureaucratic feet.  Recent articles including one online at FierceHealthCare report CMS finally decided to increase Medicare reimbursements to family doctors and internists next year.  I’m wondering if it’s too little, too late, for that aspect of primary care.  A lot of doctors have talked about refusing new Medicare patients, and some have followed through on their threat.

Perhaps the momentum pushing us toward the edge of the PCP cliff can be slowed, but I doubt it can be stopped.  We must use the available tools that can make healthcare accessible.  Even in a future where PCPs are as scarce as Buffalo nickels, telemedicine can help keep costs in check while extending physician practices.  We have the proven technology.  Can we get the attention of decision-makers in time?

 

 

TAGGED:PCPstelemedicine
Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

Business

Tips to Buy Various Types of Hospital Medication Units

July 11, 2017

Pushing, Pulling, Nudging and Tipping Healthcare Evidence into Practice: Highlights from ACRM

October 20, 2014
obamacare and employers
BusinessFinanceHealth ReformPolicy & LawPublic Health

What Employers Think About Healthcare

September 20, 2013

Contagion: Help Congress Protect the CDC’s Outbreak Investigation Budget

September 8, 2011
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?