Sacramento lawmakers voiced support for a UC Merced medical school on Thursday, during an annual meeting of the assembly committee dedicated to the school.The assembly members lauded the plan as a cost-effective means of addressing the state’s anticipated physician shortage. California will need as many as 17,000 additional physicians in 2015, with the need greatest in areas like the Central Valley.Work is scheduled to start on the school in 2015, with a unique teaching model that won’t require the construction of a costly teaching college. Instead, students will study for two years at UC Merced, then spend two years in hospitals and clinics across the Valley to get hands-on experience.While the state’s fiscal troubles have put the UC Merced Medical School’s future in doubt, Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani (D-Livingston), who helms the assembly committee on UC Merced, remains hopeful California will be able to fund the school.
UC Merced Med School plan earns plaudits from assembly members
