Nationwide, nearly one third of Medicare patients reported difficulties finding new physicians, according to a 2008 MedPAC survey, but the situation in rural Arizona seems especially acute, according to the report. In Yavapai County, the primary care physician-to-patient ratio is 5.3 for every 10,000, well below the national average of 10.5 per 10,000.
Physicians may use the shortage to negotiate better contracts with private insurers, further incentivizing them to care for privately insured patients, according to the report. However, rural Arizona counties have established programs, such as a physician referral service, to help Medicare patients locate providers. Hospitals and urgent care clinics also provide primary services, and Yavapai Regional Medical Center employs its own medical practice and is actively recruiting physicians.
Medicare patients are still concerned about the shortage, as many travel hundreds of miles to cities like Phoenix to see a primary care physician and report waiting periods of weeks to months to see a physician, according to the report.
Read the Republic’s report about the Arizona physician shortage.
