Wisconsin seeing shortage of primary care doctors

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Wisconsin needs 374 primary care doctors right now, and lots more will be needed in the future as the population gets older.

Monday, the Wisconsin Council on Medical Education announced ideas to attract more general practice physicians in places where they’re needed most.

One proposal is to raise their pay. Jonathan Raydin of the Medical College of Wisconsin says primary care doctors have had to see more patients to maintain their incomes.

According to Merritt Hawkins and Associates, family practice doctors average $172,000 a year while a radiologist can make more than $400,000.

Raydin says money is not the only thing that influences a doctor but experts say it’s still big.

Also, more doctors are staying away from the country as America gets more urbanized.

The medical education council says medical schools should enroll more students from rural areas, something the University of Wisconsin-Madison is already doing.

The group says graduates who practice in underserved areas should have more of their tuition reimbursed.

And more out-of-state doctors should be recruited, especially those raised and trained in Wisconsin who left.

About 60 percent of doctors who complete their residencies at the Medical College of Wisconsin leave the state.

Tags: wisconsin news, doctor, shortage