The Associated Press report "New York braces for health care overhaul," June 23, highlights the need for more primary care physicians.
The New York State Academy of Family Physicians has a plan: The patient-centered medical home where every patient has a physician who leads a team of professionals focused on quality, affordability and the patient. This proven model expands the primary care reach and assures access to the expertise of many providers working together to coordinate care, without sacrificing quality.
Scholarships, loan forgiveness and practice support are ways to help students to repay or defray loans but more is needed. Every New York medical school should have a primary care department offering a primary care specialty track and residency program. We need to change admission policies to recruit more students from New York since evidence shows that students from here will likely practice here.
And a greater responsibility must be placed on insurers to value and pay more for primary care.
Finally, we need an economic development plan for health care to incentivize businesses to expand making the business more attractive is the best way to attract the physicians we need and will grow our economy.
Only a concerted effort to invest in and promote primary care can ensure access to high quality care for us all.
Raymond Ebarb, M.D.
West Sayville
President, NYS Academy of Family Physicians