Ethnic Physician Organizations Team to Address Health Disparity

The Network of Ethnic Physician Organizations , a project estblished in 2002 by the California Medical Association Foundation, is a collaboration of thirty seven ethnic physician organizations working together to reduce the impact of health disparities within ethnic communities. In 2006 the Network began a ground breaking needs assessment, which investigates the challenges and successes of solo and small group ethnic physician in primary care. African American, Latino, and Asian /South Asian physicians across the state have participated in focus groups to discuss barriers to providing quality care in safety net communities. The IOM has cited ethnic physicians as more likely to serve ethnic communities. Increasing the number of ethnic physicians is also viewed as an effective strategy to reduce health disparities. However, the number of solo and small group ethnic physicians providing primary care is dwindling. Of the physicians interviewed to date, over seventy five percent report that more than half of their patients qualify as members of the safety net. But private physicians are not included in the federal government's definition of safety net providers. As a result, federally qualified health centers and rural health centers are reimbursed 200 percent above that of private physicians. This disparity has resulted in an inability to provide the level of care needed in safety net communities, and a decrease in access to care. This presentation will discuss the results of the needs assessment and its policy implications on access to primary care in safety net communities.