800 open job ads ‘a sign of rural doctor crisis’
And DPA changes are exacerbating the problem, says Dr Megan Belot.
More than 800 advertised rural doctor positions remain unfilled in what the RDAA calls ‘the tip of the iceberg’.
RDAA president Dr Megan Belot said doctors were abandoning rural areas in part due to the Distribution Priority Area (DPA) changes, which allowed newly-arrived IMGs to bill Medicare from outer metropolitan locations.
A review of Rural Workforce Agency ad boards showed a lack of doctors coming the other way, she said.
More than 800 advertised positions were still vacant, although the true shortfall was probably much worse.
