The United States has fewer physicians per person than almost all comparably wealthy nations, which means fewer doctors are eligible for patient diagnosis and care. The insufficient availability of medical practitioners in the United States suggests that certain facilities are less available and less usable than they would otherwise be. Across the U.S. healthcare system, the consequences of physician shortages are clear. Health care prices are higher and access is poorer than in comparable nations. Current members of the profession also experience the adverse effects of the physician shortage. It is not shocking that 67 percent of physicians opt for more lucrative specialty care over primary care, considering the tremendous higher education costs they take on.

Compared to other nations, the financial burden of medical education assumed by individuals in the United States is greater. Higher education in the United States is much more costly than in other rich nations, even without regard to countries providing free or highly subsidized university tuition. And since U.S. medical schools are structured as graduate programs, aspiring doctors do not take advantage of medical school student loans that are explicitly subsidized. Allowing medical students to pursue a six-year degree would not only cost governments less in terms of direct outlays but could also save a substantial amount by comparatively lower spending on health care.

In polls, medical students back this up, with a large number seeing medical debt as a barrier to primary care practice. As seen by other developing countries, medical education in the United States can and should be both simplified and made more affordable. Policy malpractice amounts to requiring that young doctors take on substantial amounts of debt to obtain education of questionable significance. The development of six-year, consolidated medical degree programs that can be entered upon high school graduation should be encouraged by policymakers at the state level.