As California’s physician shortage worsens, look for MD’s to simply start dropping off of HMO insurance panels — primary care docs first.

Docs can only pedal so fast. Ramrodding additional patients into physician’s schedules means shorter appts, lower quality care.

California’s real problem is its physician unfriendly environment. Low reimbursements, intrusive insurance practices, and high cost of practice and living make california an undesirable place to practice.

Even to moving to california is difficult. To get a medical license takes 16 months and costs around a thousand bucks… so one can’t even plan to move to California in any reasonable length of time.

I have been offered several jobs in Cali, but for the above reasons have turned them down. Given the cost of living, the pay was always miserable vs everywhere else … and no one is ever sure if the state will actually remain solvent or what the legislature is going to do.