Colorado Provider Recruitment Program Helps Attract Doctors to Underserved Rural Areas

A new program sponsored by the Colorado Rural Health Center, a not-for-profit state office established in 1991, helps recruit care providers in areas of the state that have problems attracting physicians and charges only "about a fourth of what many private recruiting firms charge," the AP/Denver Rocky Mountain News reports. The Colorado Provider Recruitment program "makes connections between doctors and communities" and "checks credentials and prescreens applicants to make sure they are a good fit." The program charges a $6,000 placement fee for physicians and $3,000 for nurse practitioners or physician's assistants, compared with charges of more than $25,000 through many private companies. Jim Pernau, CEO of the Spanish Peaks Regional Health Center in Walsenburg, Colo., said, "It's always hard to recruit" doctors to rural areas, particularly because of disparities in salaries and the "living environment" in rural areas. He added, "Half of our population is at the poverty level or below -- 40% of patients you don't get paid for." According to Laura Baus, recruitment services coordinator for the Colorado Rural Health Center, a family practice doctor could earn $110,000 to $120,000 per year in Walsenburg, about $30,000 less than a physician would earn in the Denver area (AP/Denver Rocky Mountain News, 1/22).