Despite a higher number of family medicine residency positions and more medical school graduates choosing family medicine careers in 2013, recent boosts still will fall short of increasing the primary care workforce to the overall 40 percent level recommended by graduate medical education (GME) policy experts.
More family medicine residency positions were offered in 2013 than in years past, according to 2013 results of the National Resident Matching Program, or the Match. The 2013 fill rate of 96 percent was higher than the 2012 fill rate of 94.5 percent and was the fourth consecutive year family medicine’s Match rate increased.
Furthermore, the number of medical students choosing family medicine careers spiked nearly 10 percent over the past five years, according to an American Association of Family Physicians annual national survey of family medicine residency programs. More than 67 percent of first-year family medicine residents graduated from U.S. allopathic or osteopathic medical schools.
Still, the recent gains in the number of residents entering family medicine will fall short of increasing the overall primary care workforce to the recommended level of 40 percent of the physician workforce. Growth in the number of people with chronic diseases and an aging population with long-term care needs is expected to increase demand for primary care.
Another challenge to addressing the primary care workforce shortage is the possibility of cuts to GME funding. Congress is considering proposals that would further limit residency funding, despite the number of residency slots funded by Medicare being capped for more than a decade.
Medical schools are expanding enrollment in anticipation of a future physician shortage, but cuts to GME could have disastrous consequences, including access to care issues for patients in need and more medical school grads who do not match into residency.
The AMA’s Save GME campaign calls on Congress to preserve funding for residency training. Visit the campaign website today to tell your lawmakers about the importance of GME for American health care.
