Rising costs isn’t the only health care crisis. The 2002 issue of Health Affairs predicted a shortage of physician leading to a deficit of 200,000 by 2020.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects growth from 2000 – 2010 at 107,000 new physician positions (a 17.9% growth rate) and 196,000 total positions.
The percentage of physicians nationally over 55 years of age is 31%, for those over 65 it is 17%. (With a trend toward early retirement, this is a troubling trend.)
