Continued from page 1 - Oklahoma Academy of Family Physicians

4 Oklahoma Family Physician Report Fall 2010
Bold Action Necessary (Continued from page 1)
are disparate and underfunded. The
repayment amounts have not changed
since the programs’ inception and fall
far short of meeting the state’s current
needs.
By properly funding the state’s loan
repayment programs and increasing
graduate medical education offerings,
Oklahoma can greatly increase primary
care access in areas with the most need.
Chief among the multiple factors
contributing to Oklahoma’s shrinking
supply of primary care physicians is the
cost of medical school. Faced with high
medical school debt, many doctors
forgo practice in rural and
HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SHORTAGE AREAS
There are 230 HPSAs in 66 of Oklahoma’s 77 Counties
HPSA County
(Counties with one or
more Health Professional
Shortage Areas)
underserved areas and instead choose
more lucrative specialties in urban
communities.
During the 2011 legislative
session, the Oklahoma Academy of
Family Physicians will work with Reps.
Dr. Doug Cox and Earl Sears to amend
HB 1043 to include the Oklahoma
Physician Recruitment and Retention
Act, which aims to close a loophole in
how the state taxes smokeless tobacco.
This legislation will provide funds to
primary care physicians who commit to
practice in underserved rural
communities throughout the state.
This program mirrors
legislation passed by the Texas
Legislature last year, increasing its
loan repayment program to
$160,000 over four years. As a
result, Texas is now recruiting
physicians from Oklahoma. The
new program in Oklahoma will
remove one of the most
significant barriers to physicians
choosing to practice primary care
and strengthen the state’s prima-
ry care
infrastructure.
The program
also will help
reduce
unnecessary
hospitalizations
and costly trips
to the
emergency room.
Supporters of
the Physician
Recruitment and Retention Program
include the Oklahoma
Hospital Association; Oklahoma
State Medical
Association; Oklahoma
Osteopathic Association;
Oklahoma Academy of Family
Physicians; Oklahoma Academy
of Pediatrics; Oklahoma Chapter
of the American College of
Physicians; OSU Center for
Physician Of The Year (Continued from page 1)
have two children and two grandchildren. Their daughter Tiffany, her husband
Brian and their two children, T.J. and Mac, live in Oklahoma City, and their
son Tom and his wife Sara live in Norman.
Dr. Crawford is board certified by the American Board of Family Practice.
He received his medical degree from the University of Illinois College of
Medicine in Chicago and completed his residency at Baylor College of
Medicine Affiliated Hospitals-McLennan County Family Medicine Residency
Program in Waco, Texas.
Dr. Crawford was recognized at the Annual Scientific Assembly in Tulsa.
Rural Health; Oklahoma State Chamber
of Commerce; University of Oklahoma
Health Sciences Center; Oklahoma
Primary Care Association; and Blue
Cross/Blue Shield of Oklahoma.