Report: Idaho Ranked Best Place To Be A Doctor

Emilie Ritter Saunders / StateImpact

United Press International reports Idaho is the best place to be a physician.

The annual rankings compiled by Physicians Practice say Idaho is the best place to practice because of it’s “low rate of disciplinary actions against doctors.”

Here’s more from UPI.com:

The Physicians Practice’s Best States to Practice ranking found Idaho, Alabama, Texas, Nevada and South Carolina were the top places for doctors to practice by Physicians Practice, which provides physician practice management advice to more than 150,000 physicians and their practice administrators throughout the United States.

Bob Keaveney, editorial director of Physicians Practice, which has been developing its Best States to Practice list since 2003, said Idaho’s low cost of living and culture of physician independence make it the best place in America to be a practicing physician for the second straight year.

The Idaho medical board’s low rate of disciplinary actions against physicians, its low density of practicing physicians per capita and its relatively friendly malpractice climate were among the reasons that Idaho ranked on top, Keaveney said. – UPI.com

At the same time, Idaho remains one of the states with the greatest need for physicians.

As StateImpact has been reporting over the last couple of weeks, Idaho has fewer doctors per capita than every state in the nation except Mississippi.

Contributing to the shortage, Idaho’s doctor workforce is aging.  More than 41 percent of doctors here are 55 or older.