Incentive Programs for Physicians to Practice in Underserved Areas: A Nationwide Snapshot.

Abstract

Access to health care is limited in part by maldistribution of physicians. Physicians agreeing to work in underserved areas can receive a financial incentive or a visa waiver that eases immigration restrictions. However, the overall landscape and scale of incentive programs and providers remains unelucidated. This article aggregates the reported output of state and federal programs and assesses their relative contributions to increasing the physician workforce in underserved areas. The estimates derived suggest that in 2017 the National Health Service Corps supported placement of around 2000 physicians, fully state-funded financial incentive programs about 1000, and visa waiver programs over 3500.