Increasing the Number of Family Practice Physicians in Kansas May Help Lower State’s Health Care Costs

Increasing the number of family practice physicians in Kansas could help lower health costs and reduce the burden on emergency rooms and specialists, according to some health experts, the Wichita Business Journal reports. The uninsured and people who do not have a primary care provider often receive treatment in emergency rooms or from specialists, which adds to the cost of care. In addition, such patients tend to delay care, meaning they are sicker when they do seek treatment, which leads to longer recovery periods and higher costs. While most of Kansas has a sufficient number of family physicians -- there are 800 in the state -- the state "could stand to add 200 more," according to Carolyn Gaughan, executive director of the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians, the Business Journal reports. Gaughan said that to increase the number of primary care physicians, medical school training should be expanded and not focused on a "subspecialty" and schools should offer more scholarships. Many students often opt for higher-paying specialties, such as cardiology or urology, rather than going into family practice because of medical school debt, a problem Gaughan said could be addressed by creating loan forgiveness programs for students who agree to go into family practice. Dr. Rick Glover, a family practitioner and president of the Kansas Academy of Family Physicians, said that to make salaries more comparable, Medicare would need to raise reimbursement rates in Kansas, which are lower than those in larger states. "If we make it easier on reimbursement and government red tape, Kansans will be better served in the long run," he added (Mazzullo, Wichita Business Journal, 8/2).