In 2013, the number of primary care physicians varied widely by state, with California having ~26,500 providers and Wyoming having <500 providers.
Chart Explanation: The number of primary care physicians (family medicine, general practice, and internal medicine only; obstetrics/gynecology and pediatrics excluded) varied widely by state, with California (26,459) and New York (16,838) having the greatest number and Wyoming (353) and Delaware (506) having the fewest.
The American Medical Association (AMA) tracks data on all physicians in the United States, starting in medical school. Current demographic, training, practice and specialty data are available through the AMA Physician Masterfile. The Physician Characteristics volumes (AMA, 2001-2015) produce yearly counts of physicians by specialty, and counts of physicians listed as “providing medical care” (versus research, teaching, or administrative tasks) were counted here; resident/fellow/staff and office- and hospital-based physicians were included.
| Field | Data |
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| Description of Measure | Numbers of primary care physicians by U.S. state |
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| Data Source | AMA |
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| Type of Data Source | Private |
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| Data Set | Physician Masterfile |
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| Health Care System Data | No |
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| Regional or National? | National |
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| Demographic Group | AMA physicians |
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| Numerator | Counts by physician specialty |
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| Primary Data Source Indicator | Counts by physician specialty |
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| Primary Indicator Method of Measurement | Physician-reported specialty |
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| Frequency of Measurement (Primary) | Continual updates |
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| U.S. Region Covered by Primary Variable | All |
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| Period Currently Available | 2013 |
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| Pending Data | 2014 |
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| Additional Data Items of Interest | Physician demographics, training |
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| Limitations of Indicator | Physicians may not keep information current; not all physicians are members of AMA and thus may be harder to track over time; specialty is self-reported and may not reflect patient care |
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| Analytic Considerations | CKD/ESRD prevalence data can be used for population denominator (per patient); only those listed as providing patient care should be included |
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References and Sources:
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Smart DR. Physician Characteristics and Distribution in the US, 2010 Edition. Chicago, IL: Division of Survey & Data Resources, American Medical Association; 2009.