O.C. First 5 Tries Loan-Assistance Effort for Pediatric Specialists

Orange County's First 5 commission has announced plans to offer $125,000 in medical education loan forgiveness to pediatric specialists who move to the county to practice, Payers & Providers reports.

The Children and Families Commission of Orange County is the local affiliate of California's First 5 Commission, which helps fund early childhood health care and education programs in the state.

Sherry Novick, executive director of the First 5 Association of California, said other county First 5 commissions will closely monitor the Orange County effort because no other First 5 program has undertaken a loan-forgiveness program.

Shortage of Specialists

Like many other regions of California, Orange County currently is facing a severe shortage of pediatric specialists.

A recent survey by the county's Medi-Cal managed care plan CalOptima found that 92% of pediatric patients obtained specialist referrals within 30 days, compared with 100% of patients who accessed primary and urgent care within that time frame. Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program.

In response to the county's shortage of pediatric specialists, the local First 5 branch developed the loan forgiveness initiative. The program will offer more than six times the amount of debt help that state programs provide.