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Maryland Physician Shortage Facts

02/15/2024

THE PROBLEM

Physician supply lags patient demand nationally and across Maryland. As supply falls, patients wait longer to see a doctor, and doctors burn out.

The U.S. is projected to have 120,000 too few doctors nationally.

Nearly 40% of American physicians will reach retirement age by 2030.¹
By 2030, the United States will face a shortage of over 120,000 physicians.²

Maryland is projected to be short 1,052 doctors by 2030.³

35.8% of physicians in Maryland are current within retirement range.⁴
The aging workforce is most prevalent in the capital region and among surgical specialties.⁵

14 of Marylands’s 24 counties are health professional shortage areas (HPSAs).⁶

8 of the 24 are partial HPSAs meaning 22/24 counties are affected.
Low-income citizens are disproportionately affected by these shortages.
HPSA designations indicate areas where there are 3,500 or more patients for every one provider.⁷

Ranked against other states, Maryland’s doctor-to-patient ration is:

35% worse for family medicine and general practice

44% worse for interventional cardiology

249% worse in pediatric cardiology

37% worse in pediatric hematology and oncology

6% worse in sports medicine