title: Health care reform and the primary care workforce bottleneck.
abstract: To establish and sustain the high-performing health care system envisioned in the Affordable Care Act (ACA), current provisions in the law to strengthen the primary care workforce must be funded, implemented, and tested. However, the United States is heading towards a severe primary care workforce bottleneck due to ballooning demand and vanishing supply. Demand will be fueled by the "silver tsunami" of 80 million Americans retiring over the next 20 years and the expanded insurance coverage for 32 million Americans in the ACA. The primary care workforce is declining because of decreased production and accelerated attrition. To mitigate the looming primary care bottleneck, even bolder policies will be needed to attract, train, and sustain a sufficient number of primary care professionals. General internists must continue their vital leadership in this effort.
authors: Division of General Internal Medicine, New York University School of Medicine, VA New York Harbor Healthcare System, 423 E. 23rd Street, New York, NY 10010, USA. Mark.schwartz3@va.gov
authors: Mark D
authors: MD
authors: Schwartz
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018166:Health Care Reform / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006295:Health Resources / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D006801:Humans; D058991:Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; D011320:Primary Health Care; D011787:Quality of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends; D014481:United States; D000078329:Workforce