PROFESSIONHigh medical school debt steers life choices for young doctorsThe cost of medical education is rising as physician incomes remain relatively flat.By Myrle Croasdale, amednews staff. May 17, 2004. Susan Miller is 25 years old and finishing her first year at Yale School of Medicine. She'd like to get married, but she won't anytime soon now that she's discovered she would lose $80,000 in financial aid over the next three years. She is figuring she'll already have to borrow $200,000 by the time she graduates and doesn't want to add to that figure. David Rosman, the medical student trustee on the AMA board, also found debt an issue when he was helping a friend hunt for an apartment in Boston. "The landlord couldn't understand how we had so much debt coming out of college," he said. Once they explained they were medical students, the landlord relaxed, but Rosman still finds six-figure debt intimidating. "It affects how you sign a lease and what kind of life you lead going forward," Rosman said. "It's like having a mortgage before you earn your first dollar of income." Pediatrician Jennifer Shu, MD, chair of the AMA's young physician section, consolidated her school loans to keep the monthly payments within reach, but she'll end up paying more over the long run. She's 40 and has yet to own her first home -- partially because of debt, but also because she lives in San Diego, where housing costs are especially high. More and more, medical students and young physicians are being stymied by debt. According to a new report issued by the Assn. of American Medical Colleges, medical school graduates in 2003 carried 4.5 times more debt than grads did in 1984, when the median debt was $22,000 for public school graduates and $26,500 for private school graduates. By 2003, the median debt was $100,000 and $135,000 for public school and private school graduates, respectively. [...]Full text of American Medical News content is available to AMA members and paid subscribers.
Copyright 2004 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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