Doctor shortages predicted to increase as health-care reform increases the number of insured

Rural America has been dealing with a chronic shortage of doctors, specifically primary care physicians, for years, but that problem may grow -- and thus make it even more difficult for rural areas to recruit physicians.

The Association of American Medical Colleges says that as health reform expands the number of insured people and they seek medical treatment, the U.S. may face a shortage of 150,000 doctors by 2015, Suzanne Sataline and Shirley S. Wang of The Wall Street Journal report. AAMC reports the shortage will be most noticeable among primary-care physicians, who will take on added importance under the new reforms. You can read our most recent report about primary care physician shortages in rural America here.

Increased enrollment in U.S. medical schools will not solve the problem by itself, the reporters write, because the growing number of medical students face a fixed number of residency positions upon graduation. Would-be doctors are required to complete at least three years of residency at hospitals or clinics upon graduation. "It will probably take 10 years to even make a dent into the number of doctors that we need out there," Atul Grover, the AAMC's chief advocacy officer, told the reporters. The health care reform does include one attempt to solve the residency problem by reallocating funding for unused spots to other institutions that can fill them with primary-care or general-surgery residencies. (Read more) (WSJ map)