The plan — outlined in a report released this month — comes from a task force of health, labor and education leaders, co-chaired by University of California President Janet Napolitano and Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health CEO Lloyd Dean.
It states that California is projected to face a shortage of 4,100 primary care clinicians and 600,000 home care workers in 10 years. The state is also projected to lack one-third of the psychiatrists it needs.
To address the looming healthcare workforce shortage, the task force outlined 10 priority actions.
Proposals of the California Future Health Workforce Commission include: developing more primary care physician and psychiatry residency positions; providing medical students with full-tuition scholarships in exchange for practicing in rural areas and other under-resourced communities; and maximizing the nurse practitioner role on care teams to help fill primary care positions.
The task force said implementation of the commission’s prioritized recommendations will require a $3 billion investment over 10 years. According to the LA Times, those funds could come from the state, health systems, medical groups and private industry.
The commission reportedly plans to pitch the proposal to state and legislative leaders soon.
Access the task force’s full plan here.
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