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As Population Grows Older, Geriatricians Grow Scarce

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So it's all the more worrisome that the looming dearth of geriatricians is happening alongside another trend: a shortage of primary care doctors.

Most geriatricians are certified by either the American Board of Family Medicine or the American Board of Internal Medicine. To stave off the predicted deficit in the field's number of practitioners, geriatricians have pushed hard to encourage family doctors to get extra training in caring for the elderly.

But fewer physicians are going into primary care these days, and many are dropping out, tired of the hassles of low reimbursements and managed care.

Nevertheless, the American Geriatrics Society has lobbied aggressively for government support and more medical training:

¿ Last May, Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) introduced the Geriatric Assessment and Chronic Care Coordination Act of 2007, which codifies the coordinated team approach and requires that Medicare provide quality programs for older adults with multiple chronic illnesses.

¿ On March 4, Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) introduced the Caring for an Aging America Act, which allows young physicians, nurses and other providers to work off all or part of their medical training debt by obtaining additional training in geriatrics or gerontology (the study of the aging process) and by working full time with the elderly for at least two years.

¿ In 2007, South Carolina established a loan-forgiveness program that offers physicians a free pass on their medical training if they go into geriatrics for five years. Five other states are looking at the plan.

Meanwhile:

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