Updated: New allopath/osteopath med school list

[Regal Regan]

The opening of new medical schools is a good idea, especially schools like Texas Tech-El Paso, which are geared toward producing physicians to serve as PCPs in undeserved areas.

People's concern over this issue seems either misguided or entirely selfish. From the perspective of the rest of the country, there is a dearth of physicians and, even in the clinic where I work, patients sometimes have to wait a month or more for an appointment. You should not put your own myopic interests over the needs of your country.

Given the extreme need for more doctors, people should be rejoicing over the opening of new medical schools, rather than decrying their opening.

Do you think that your post might come across as hypocritical when you call people selfish for not putting their country's interest ahead of their own when just a few weeks ago, you said this:

Absolutely not. I really care about money and would not want a careerwhere I made less than $150,000, although $120,000 would be acceptable,if the career was fun.

Oh and the "absolutely not" was in response to the question, would you still want to be a doctor if doctors didn't make so much money.

Do me a favor and come back to this thread when you're a third-year med student. We can discuss then and now.

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[DocEspana]

The opening of new medical schools is a good idea, especially schools like Texas Tech-El Paso, which are geared toward producing physicians to serve as PCPs in undeserved areas.

People's concern over this issue seems either misguided or entirely selfish. From the perspective of the rest of the country, there is a dearth of physicians and, even in the clinic where I work, patients sometimes have to wait a month or more for an appointment. You should not put your own myopic interests over the needs of your country.

Given the extreme need for more doctors, people should be rejoicing over the opening of new medical schools, rather than decrying their opening.

IDK if i'd be quite as optimistic as you, but i do support people who understand there is a deal of good that could come from this (if nothing else, getting better trained doctors in these underserved areas, rather than the usual IMG/FMG leftovers. also: redistributing education to these areas).

so

 

[DocEspana]

hahaha and I come to the 2nd page to see you got burned by Ronald Regan. Gotta be logically consistent man. Can't claim money makes or breaks it for you and then claim that it would be good for others to take the less-well compensated path in El Paso. It comes off disingenuous and you might end up trending into the same ethically nebulous area that got us where we are now. Everyone wants more primary care docs, as long as someone else is being these PCPS.

 

[womp]

how is 6 almost half of 32?

You're a pretty obnoxious guy. You are deliberately not counting the more than half a dozen DO schools that were started in the last 5 years. Those are still new schools for all intents and purposes. Many of them haven't even graduated their inaugural classes yet.

A casual look at that list shows that DO schools account for nearly half of the new schools, not 6. Also MD schools have a much larger base to expand from, so the rate of growth is far smaller than that of DO schools. Many of the new MD schools are actually in places where there is a shortage of medical schools, like in California. But does Pennsylvania (already saturated with medical schools) really need 2 more DO schools?

 

[Dbate]

Do you think that your post might come across as hypocritical when you call people selfish for not putting their country's interest ahead of their own when just a few weeks ago, you said this:



Oh and the "absolutely not" was in response to the question, would you still want to be a doctor if doctors didn't make so much money.

Do me a favor and come back to this thread when you're a third-year med student. We can discuss then and now.

Absolutely not. There is a key difference between people arguing there should be fewer doctors to allow them to have the specialties of their choice--despite the need for more doctors--and my stating that I wouldn't want to make less than 150K, which is about average for PCPs, who are the lowest paid physicians.

 

[TheRunner]

FP seems to be a "noble" career goal and I agree we need more FP docs. But it's just not a feasible option for many people who are graduating with 200K in loans (or more!) as the pay, right now, is just not what it should be. Additionally, increasing mid-level encroachment will likely decrease FP pay even further in the next 10-15 years, making the financial situation for FP's even more dismal. It may be good for the country, as we need more FP docs, but what will be the motivation to attend medical school if you graduate with 200K in student loans and a 150K a year salary? 2 years to become a PA would look really good to a lot of people. Now if something is done on the federal level to increase loan repayment for those who go the FP route, that would be different scenario.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

Absolutely not. There is a key difference between people arguing there should be fewer doctors to allow them to have the specialties of their choice--despite the need for more doctors--and my stating that I wouldn't want to make less than 150K, which is about average for PCPs, who are the lowest paid physicians.

What if PCP's salary was cut to 100 K by the time you became a resident. Do you think you'd be happy making that?

Also, how is your saying that you wouldn't be a doctor if they didn't make a 150 k different from someone who places importance on something else -- namely, specialty choice as opposed to salary? How is it that someone who wouldn't become a doctor if they couldn't do something surgically related a selfish person, but it isn't selfish of you to say you wouldn't be a doctor if you can't make 150k?

 

[Dbate]

FP seems to be a "noble" career goal and I agree we need more FP docs. But it's just not a feasible option for many people who are graduating with 200K in loans (or more!) as the pay, right now, is just not what it should be. Additionally, increasing mid-level encroachment will likely decrease FP pay even further in the next 10-15 years, making the financial situation for FP's even more dismal. It may be good for the country, as we need more FP docs, but what will be the motivation to attend medical school if you graduate with 200K in student loans and a 150K a year salary? 2 years to become a PA would look really good to a lot of people. Now if something is done on the federal level to increase loan repayment for those who go the FP route, that would be different scenario.

Texas Tech has already taken steps to address that problem with its Family Medicine Accelerated Track.

http://www.ttuhsc.edu/newsevents/2010/march/fmat.aspx

 

[MedStudentWanna]

FP seems to be a "noble" career goal and I agree we need more FP docs. But it's just not a feasible option for many people who are graduating with 200K in loans (or more!) as the pay, right now, is just not what it should be. Additionally, increasing mid-level encroachment will likely decrease FP pay even further in the next 10-15 years, making the financial situation for FP's even more dismal. It may be good for the country, as we need more FP docs, but what will be the motivation to attend medical school if you graduate with 200K in student loans and a 150K a year salary? 2 years to become a PA would look really good to a lot of people. Now if something is done on the federal level to increase loan repayment for those who go the FP route, that would be different scenario.

I agree with this 100%. I think this is the point that Regan made earlier (and by the way, Doc Es, I'm pretty sure her name is Ree-gan. Your Ronald Reagan jab was stupid).

 

[Dbate]

What if PCP's salary was cut to 100 K by the time you became a resident. Do you think you'd be happy making that?

Also, how is your saying that you wouldn't be a doctor if they didn't make a 150 k different from someone who places importance on something else -- namely, specialty choice as opposed to salary? How is it that someone who wouldn't become a doctor if they couldn't do something surgically related a selfish person, but it isn't selfish of you to say you wouldn't be a doctor if you can't make 150k?

They didn't say they wouldn't be a doctor, if they couldn't get the specialty of their choice. They said they would prefer that the number of doctors be limited so they can accomplish their goal, which is far more pernicious than them simply choosing another profession.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

They didn't say they wouldn't be a doctor, if they couldn't get the specialty of their choice. They said they would prefer that the number of doctors be limited so they can accomplish their goal, which is far more pernicious than them simply choosing another profession.

Actually, one of the core arguments has been that many people won't choose medicine over things like PA school if the competition becomes insane, forcing people into primary care. Many people don't want to do primary care. They just don't have interest in it. I think it takes a lot of gall for you, a guy who wouldn't consider a field without a 6-figure salary, to call them selfish just because that isn't where their passion lies.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

Texas Tech has already taken steps to address that problem with its Family Medicine Accelerated Track.

http://www.ttuhsc.edu/newsevents/2010/march/fmat.aspx

And that's just more proof that this problem is being approached from the wrong angle. What needs to happen is more schools need to do what Texas Tech is doing as opposed to just opening up new schools with traditional programs and hoping that some are squeezed out of other specialties and go into PC.

 

[DocEspana]

I agree with this 100%. I think this is the point that Regan made earlier (and by the way, Doc Es, I'm pretty sure her name is Ree-gan. Your Ronald Reagan jab was stupid).

honeslty a mistake. I thought the name was a play on reagan using the name regan, somehow completely missed it was regal not ronald. I was trying to agree with RR there, so no point in dumb name taunts, I honestly misread the name.

 

[Dbate]

Actually, one of the core arguments has been that many people won't choose medicine over things like PA school if the competition becomes insane, forcing people into primary care. Many people don't want to do primary care. They just don't have interest in it. I think it takes a lot of gall for you, a guy who wouldn't consider a field without a 6-figure salary, to call them selfish just because that isn't where their passion lies.

I don't think it requires any gall at all.

 

[TheRunner]

Texas Tech has already taken steps to address that problem with its Family Medicine Accelerated Track.

http://www.ttuhsc.edu/newsevents/2010/march/fmat.aspx

I'm not sure decreasing the time spent in medical school is the answer, though. I'd be curious to know how this program has been received nationally. It will also be interesting to see if the quality of graduates is decreased as this moves forward.

 

[Dbate]

I'm not sure decreasing the time spent in medical school is the answer, though. I'd be curious to know how this program has been received nationally. It will also be interesting to see if the quality of graduates is decreased as this moves forward.

The program doesn't simply decrease the time required to complete medical school, but cuts the cost of medical school in half. The hope is that by reducing costs (at one of the least expensive medical schools in the country), then people who are set on being PCPs will not have to change their mind due to debt.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

I don't think it requires any gall at all.

Any time one is a hypocrite, it requires gall.

 

[DocEspana]

You're a pretty obnoxious guy. You are deliberately not counting the more than half a dozen DO schools that were started in the last 5 years. Those are still new schools for all intents and purposes. Many of them haven't even graduated their inaugural classes yet.

A casual look at that list shows that DO schools account for nearly half of the new schools, not 6. Also MD schools have a much larger base to expand from, so the rate of growth is far smaller than that of DO schools. Many of the new MD schools are actually in places where there is a shortage of medical schools, like in California. But does Pennsylvania (already saturated with medical schools) really need 2 more DO schools?

In the last 5 years (2005-2010 entering classes) 5 DO schools have opened and 10 MD schools have opened. In the next 5 years 6 DO schools will open and 16 MD schools will open.

I fail to see your point. You assume what you're told on here is true. The facts dont back it up. You need to look at the last 12 or 15 years for DO schools to overtake MD growth. The late 90's was a big time for DO schools. And future growth is very MD heavy. I'm just bringing light to the fact that no one acknowledges MD growth is more than DO growth.

And yes. I understand the backing location stability nonsense. And the AOA really should start taking school planning more deliberately so that the rushed adjective no longer fits for new schools. But thats a separate issue. I was just commenting that everyone dismissed the original list as flawed beyond utlity and replaced, instead, the AAMC list of new opening schools (featured on wikipedia).

And I agree: No PA does not need another school. But california is a bad counter example as that has to be the third or fourth most doctor saturated state behind PA and MA. This is using the AAMC active physician per 100,000 numbers, not the census total physician numbers (where retirement states appear to have huge number of physicians) Even if it doesnt have the schools there, schools are in all the bordering states using its hospitals, and plenty of doctors come back there anway. There is no physician shortage (as a state, at least) there. Unlike Texas, which is struggling to get enough physicians. Any Texas school is a good idea, i dont care who accredits it.

 

[motomed]

"I don't see how this many could could open without disrupting medicine as we know it."

I see very clearly how this many could open without disrupting medicine as we know it.

there, we're even. neither one of those statements is an actual argument, but whatever.... not to mention the fact that disrupting medicine as we know it isn't necessarily a bad thing.... still waiting for someone to tell me how increasing competition for residency spots and pushing some FMGs out is bad for the system on the whole.

 

[motomed]

FP seems to be a "noble" career goal and I agree we need more FP docs. But it's just not a feasible option for many people who are graduating with 200K in loans (or more!) as the pay, right now, is just not what it should be. Additionally, increasing mid-level encroachment will likely decrease FP pay even further in the next 10-15 years, making the financial situation for FP's even more dismal. It may be good for the country, as we need more FP docs, but what will be the motivation to attend medical school if you graduate with 200K in student loans and a 150K a year salary? 2 years to become a PA would look really good to a lot of people. Now if something is done on the federal level to increase loan repayment for those who go the FP route, that would be different scenario.

loans are not really an issue. there are countless ways to get them taken care of to a large extent if FM is really what you want to do. this is an argument commonly thrown out by people who don't have an interest in FM and haven't really looked into it. you don't hear people actually going into FM complaining about loan repayment anymore than people from other fields do.

the midlevel takeover is a far bigger issue and may be something that keeps me from doing primary care. It's not a money issue for me, it's just that I don't want to be replaced by an NP or PA and don't like the direction these fields are going in regards to midlevels. this isn't the way to address the shortage, IMO.

 

[Parietal Lobe]

still waiting for someone to tell me how increasing competition for residency spots and pushing some FMGs out is bad for the system on the whole.

Just a bystander here, but multiple people have addressed this fallacy that you keep projecting into the argument. The fact that you don't agree with their opinion doesn't mean they haven't stated it over and over and over and over again.

loans are not really an issue.

And honestly, if the people posting here are smart, which I know they are, they will put you on ignore. You're an idiot pre-med who knows nothing about med school and likes to argue with everyone by throwing out the standby "that's not an issue" to everything you can't thoroughly explain. You have no clue how this process works, nor do you know what the real world is about. Anyone giving you the time of day at this point is just amusing themselves.

 

[AntiHouseMD]

I'm looking to get into general pediatrics, so hopefully my competition isn't as stiff when I hopefully enter med school. Still, this list is concerning. These schools are opening up simply to collect tuition money from students without a regard to what impact it'll have on medicine. I know it's a good idea to have more opportunities for people to get into medicine, but where does it end? Hospitals and health care companies won't open up more spots for physicians; they'll just leave it as is and keep earning the same amount of money.

 

[Socrates25]

10 years after these new programs open up, I swear to god I'm going to publish a study showing that the program graduates are no more likely to go to rural areas than the already existing programs. Considering that many of these programs were built SPECIFICALLY for "producing more rural doctors" it will be nice to expose their lies/fraud.

The taxpayers of these states deserve to know that, contrary to the lies of the school leaders, their taxpayer dollars are in fact going to support more doctors for Highland Park Texas, not Hicktown Texas.

 

[Brigade4Radiant]

I'm all for this more FM spots need to be filled. If you can't compete then blame yourself.

 

[KeyzerSoze]

The opening of new medical schools is a good idea, especially schools like Texas Tech-El Paso, which are geared toward producing physicians to serve as PCPs in undeserved areas.

People's concern over this issue seems either misguided or entirely selfish. From the perspective of the rest of the country, there is a dearth of physicians and, even in the clinic where I work, patients sometimes have to wait a month or more for an appointment. You should not put your own myopic interests over the needs of your country.

Given the extreme need for more doctors, people should be rejoicing over the opening of new medical schools, rather than decrying their opening.

You seem to have entirely missed the point that opening new medical schools can't possibly increase the number of physicians working in this country, since the bottleneck is residency positions, not medical school spots.

 

[officedepot]

if the number of med school grads increases, there will either be fewer foreign grads matching or more US med school grads not matching. it will probably be mostly but not entirely the former.

Exactly. The whole point of more med schools is to get more US med grads becoming US doctors. These types I believe are considered higher quality. Residencies don't like IMG from carribean schools and foreign grads from other countries taking our training positions. They do now because there are not enough spots to fill US programs. Residencies already prefer US grads so more of them with still plenty of spots to spare isn't really an issue for the most part I think.

It's essentially a future political debate we are witnessing the beginning of: once we have enough US grads from MD and DO schools should we allow foreign graduates to train in our country?

 

[Socrates25]

bump..... wonderful now there are not 1 but 2 new medical schools called "King." One osteo and one allo program.

Link #1: http://www.lcme.org/newschoolprocess.htm
Link #2: http://www.kingschoolofmedicine.org/our-vision/

Pretty soon they might as well start calling them Burger King School of Medicine.

BTW, this new "King School of Medicine" opening up in Abingdon VA has a whopping population of 8,000 residents per wikipedia. I'm sure their clinical rotations will suck ass, the school will force everybody into shadowing some rural FPs, if they are lucky their "hospital" experience will take place in some ****hole 50 bed community hospital in the next town over.

10 years ago only osteo schools pulled that crap and now the MD programs are doing it too.

If you read the vision statement of this school, they want a goal of 150 med students per class.... in a town of less than 10k.

Dont you love their new campus? Its in freakin vocational tech strip mall building called the "Stone Mill Technology and Business Park"

 

[SoundofSilver]

Interesting thread.

As others have pointed out, the expansion of U.S. med schools will shut out alot of foreign grads from matching. It will also shut out some U.S. grads (particularly those from these new schools no one has ever heard of) but not to the same extent as FMGs.

Unfortunately for all AMGs, competitive specialties are going to get exponentially more competitive and more U.S. grads will be forced into primary care.

Expanding med schools without concurrently expanding residency slots IS problematic. It will do nothing to combat the so-called physician shortage which is supposedly the reason for opening all these new schools.

 

[IMSingular]

I think there should be more residencies than students. A student who spends 200K shouldn't be in limbo. If it is desirable to increase the quality level then make passing score for steps 200 instead of 180.

 

[SteinUmStein]

I think there should be more residencies than students. A student who spends 200K shouldn't be in limbo. If it is desirable to increase the quality level then make passing score for steps 200 instead of 180.

That sounds great, but that would require money. From the government. Yeah... not likely any time soon. As far as the bolded portion, talk to some lower and mid-tier law graduates about spending 200k and being in limbo indefinitely.

 

[YH5]

61. DO - Univ South Alabama (http://www.southalabama.edu/healthpr...teopathic.html)

I never realized that an undergraduate website explaining what DO schools are and how to apply to them is now considered a DO school itself.

 

[Socrates25]

61. DO - Univ South Alabama (http://www.southalabama.edu/healthpr...teopathic.html)

I never realized that an undergraduate website explaining what DO schools are and how to apply to them is now considered a DO school itself.

Originally that link had a blurb about South Alabama opening up a DO program. Looks like their plans have changed, its no longer Univ South Alabama but there is still a school in the works (see below).

http://www2.dothaneagle.com/news/2010/may/18/samc_plans_to_open_medical_school-ar-348324/

 

[YH5]

Originally that link had a blurb about South Alabama opening up a DO program. Looks like their plans have changed, its no longer Univ South Alabama but there is still a school in the works (see below).

http://www2.dothaneagle.com/news/2010/may/18/samc_plans_to_open_medical_school-ar-348324/

I'm aware of that school, but I have never heard of USA planning to open a DO school in addition to their MD medical school. Are there any schools in the country that have both?

 

[Microshaft]

Correct me if i'm wrong, but it seems like most of the new medical schools are private schools (ie not funded by the government) and is not the result of a government plan of some sort. In fact, it doesn't seem like the govt is doing much at all to compensate for the supposed demand for physicians in the future.

Wouldn't this lead to a scenario where american healthcare becomes a closed economy, yet highly competitive to enter, and would not function well enough to serve the public's needs? If so, I think this proves how broke the US government must be.

I think instead of creating the medical schools, they should be opening up new hospitals...

 

[Socrates25]

Update: Mayo/ASU are planning yet another medical school in Arizona.

Link: http://www.azcentral.com/business/a...o-clinic-plans-medical-school-scottsdale.html

The Phoenix area had 0 medical schools in 2006; now they have freakin 4 of them. Is Phoenix trying to outbid Philadelphia or New York for the most concentrated medical school cluster in the country?

Arizona increases from 1 to 5 total medical schools in the span of 5 years.

Dont worry though, the idiot leaders say there's still plenty of clinical training spots in the Phoenix area, you'll just have to rotate thru Dr Rusty's 5 and dime family practice clinic instead of a major health center.

 

[SAvoodoo]

Edit: See below

 

[SAvoodoo]

I'm aware of that school, but I have never heard of USA planning to open a DO school in addition to their MD medical school. Are there any schools in the country that have both?

Michigan State University has both.

 

[FML]

I'm aware of that school, but I have never heard of USA planning to open a DO school in addition to their MD medical school. Are there any schools in the country that have both?

I think UMDNJ does. Not positive though.

 

[DwightSchruteDO]

I think UMDNJ does. Not positive though.

UMDNJ has 2 MD schools and 1 DO school. Touro has 3 DO schools and 1 MD school.

Also #28 on the list does not exist.

 

[Zoopeda]

That's a pretty crude and outdated list. Nix Wisconsin DO too, as of this month... http://wisccom.org/

 

[SoundofSilver]

The opening of new medical schools is a good idea, especially schools like Texas Tech-El Paso, which are geared toward producing physicians to serve as PCPs in undeserved areas.

People's concern over this issue seems either misguided or entirely selfish. From the perspective of the rest of the country, there is a dearth of physicians and, even in the clinic where I work, patients sometimes have to wait a month or more for an appointment. You should not put your own myopic interests over the needs of your country.

Given the extreme need for more doctors, people should be rejoicing over the opening of new medical schools, rather than decrying their opening.

The whole point is that opening new med schools does not increase the number of physicians in this country because the number of residency slots remains stagnant. It simply pushes out FMGs and makes the match more nerve wracking for AMGs.

Edit: Didn't realize that this was an old post I was responding to. But I suppose it still serves to reinforce the concept that most people in the general public don't realize that increasing the number of med schools doesn't automatically mean an increased number of practicing doctors.

 

[Zoopeda]

...increasing the number of med schools doesn't automatically mean an increased number of practicing doctors.

Is that really true? I don't know much at all about the relative rate of expansion of residency programs, but I did speak with an admin at one of the new DO schools (COMP-NW). He explained that COMP has created a large number of residency slots around Oregon to essentially accommodate their first graduating class. There weren't any DO residencies in Lebanon or Corvalis OR a few years ago, and now I wanna say there are almost 2 dozen. Likewise, a family member (orthopedic surgeon in upstate NY) was just contacted by LECOM to set up a surgical residency primarily for their graduates. I'd love to see a post of some larger scale numbers, but just a little dabbling reveals at least some growth which translates to more practicing doctors. At worst, it seems like US residencies might crowd out the Caribbean students while we wait for residency slots to catch up with demand. Anyone with better information to illustrate the feared bottleneck? On the other hand, it's definitely true that NPs and PAs are gaining political influence and may very well swoop in where doctors simply just aren't cutting it...

 

[ljpm8224]

10 years after these new programs open up, I swear to god I'm going to publish a study showing that the program graduates are no more likely to go to rural areas than the already existing programs. Considering that many of these programs were built SPECIFICALLY for "producing more rural doctors" it will be nice to expose their lies/fraud.

The taxpayers of these states deserve to know that, contrary to the lies of the school leaders, their taxpayer dollars are in fact going to support more doctors for Highland Park Texas, not Hicktown Texas.

if you're doing that, you might as well go after all the applicants tout their desire to work in primary care and in rural underserved communities... and promptly pursue derm/ENT/etc after acceptance.

i mean, please... the hypocrisy is blatant and it is systemic. think of those courageous NPs, PAs, even DOs who "answered the call"- they were going to rise up and came to the rescue and save primary care!! oh wait... now they all want to specialize, too.

imo, only fix is comprehensive and aggressive government sponsored loan forgiveness programs for primary care/family medicine docs, especially in the undesirable locales that fancypants metropolitan types like meself won't be able to saunter down the tree-lined sidewalk to procure our morning latte and organic ethically raised eggs on fresh baked croissant.

 

[drfeelgood]

MD univeristy of california, riverside

 

[Socrates25]

Update -- apparently there is a nursing school in Florida that is thinking about opening up a DO program.

http://www.osteopathic.org/inside-a...eges-of-osteopathic-medicine-and-campuses.pdf

http://www.alliedhealthandnursingeducation.com/

Unbelievable.

 

[MinitorV]

Another school in Virginia

DO- Liberty University

http://www.liberty.edu/index.cfm?PID=18495&MID=37265

 

[IDoIt4Love]

There has been some debate about whether or not "that guy who ranked orthopedics as his only match choice and didn't end up matching" is representative of the overall pool of US allopathic seniors who don't end up successfully matching. To answer that question:

http://www.nrmp.org/data/resultsanddata2012.pdf

Go to the chart on page 33, titled, "Percentages of Unmatched U.S. Seniors and Independent Applicants Who Ranked Each Specialty as Their Only Choice, 2012."

78.6% of unmatched US allopathic seniors in 2012 ranked one of the following as their ONLY choice:

Derm (8.2%)
Neurosurgery (9.7%)
Rad-Onc (15.3%)
Ortho (18.1%)
Otolaryngology (14.3%)
Plastic Surgery (9.3%)
Diagnostic Radiology (1.8%)
Anesthesiology (1.9%)

In summary: yes, the majority of US allopathic seniors who don't match tend to be the ones that only rank one highly competitive specialty and nothing else. So long as you're a US allopathic student and don't make any crazy choices like this, you should be fine. Stop freaking out about all these new schools!

 

[circulus vitios]

People's concern over this issue seems either misguided or entirely selfish. From the perspective of the rest of the country, there is a dearth of physicians and, even in the clinic where I work, patients sometimes have to wait a month or more for an appointment. You should not put your own myopic interests over the needs of your country.

Are areas underserved because of a lack of physicians, or are they underserved because the areas are worthless dumps? I don't care how much money you pay me, I'm not going to live/work in the ghetto or some flyover state.

 

[AFMD]

The fact that there are limited residencies PROTECTS physicains as it blocks too many phycians from being trained and driving down prices. The limited residency system only allows specialists to make more money (as well as the intended effect of keeping physician quality high). It doesn't matter how many schools are opened, the number of physicians will always be limited by residencies (as least in our current system).
But even if there are many more medical students applying for residencies that doesn't mean there are more QUALIFIED canidates for residency. Higher quanity of students means that many who were lower quality were accepted. If you're one of the lower quality students, I'm sorry, you might have a hard time. But if you're a higher quality student who would have got in even if there weren't many schools or med student spots, why are you worried? How does it hurt you to add a bunch of lower quality canidates to the pool?
What incentive does anyone have to create more specialized residencies with government money? Government wants PCPs, government (Department of Health and Human Services) funds the vast majority of residencies. How entitled am I when I think that the government should pay for a rads residency for me just becuase I want one? Right or wrong, I'm super lame if that's how I think.
Bottom line for how this will effect you: if you add more specialized residencies and you get in (even though you are lower quality and would NOT have gotten in otherwise) you've only hurt the field. You've added more competition for yourself (driving down prices etc) and you've added more lower quality physicians to your field.

 

[docnotsopc]

how is 6 almost half of 32?

I think he means the outdated and horribly inaccurate list the OP showed