The Grants Benefit 11 Physicians Serving Under-Resourced Communities of Color in L.A. County
LOS ANGELES – Medical school can cost a quarter of a million dollars or more. Is it any wonder that 75 percent of medical school graduates are left with student loans? The median medical school debt is $200,000. And researchers say debt is higher for low and middle income students, who often are Black or Hispanic. These are the physicians who are needed to address disparities in health outcomes in the communities they are from.
In an effort to boost the number of physicians working in these communities, L.A. Care Health Plan is proud to announce a new investment of $2 million in Provider Loan Repayment Program (PLRP) grants that will help reduce the burden of loan debt for 11 physicians working in under-resourced communities. With this new investment, L.A. Care has now invested $4 million to award a total of 25 physicians in 2023.
“Diversity in the health care workforce has proven to promote better access to health care and improves health outcomes in underserved communities,” said John Baackes, L.A. Care CEO. “L.A. Care is committed to helping safety net clinics and practices keep physicians who can provide the culturally sensitive care that will meet the needs of our members.”
This is the second round of PLRP grants this year. The program is part of L.A. Care’s $155 million Elevating the Safety Net initiative, which launched in 2018 to recruit, train and retain highly qualified primary care physicians within the L.A. County safety net.
Among the grantees in this round is Kaitlin Arena, MD, a pediatrician working at Watts Healthcare, a Federally Qualified Health Center in South Los Angeles.
“I graduated medical school with significant undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and medical school debt, which has caused me to lose sleep for years,” said Arena. “I didn't want to compromise my career goals of working with vulnerable populations in L.A. in order to pay my bills. This award allows me to pursue my service-oriented career goals, while also establishing solid financial footing for my personal and family goals.”
Hishen Dang, DO, is another grantee. He is practicing family medicine at the AltaMed facility near Chinatown.
“The loan repayment program will allow me to continue practicing high-quality primary care against the backdrop of crushing student loan debt and the ever-increasing cost of living,” said Dang. “As a geriatrician, the grant will allow me to continue to be a leader and resource in L.A. County's health care safety net to address the medical, psychosocial, spiritual, and existential needs of L.A.'s most vulnerable older adults.”
Since the launch of the Elevating the Safety Net initiative, L.A. Care, with the help of Uncommon Good, a nonprofit that helps identify the appropriate grantees, has awarded nearly $27 million in loan repayment grants in support of 170 physicians. This program is part of L.A. Care’s commitment to advancing health equity, giving everyone a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible.