10:00 a.m. yesterday
On July 7, NCAFP leaders attended the press conference where NC Governor Josh Stein signed the new state budget into law! NCAFP President Dr. Benjamin “Frankie” Simmons, NCAFP Executive Board member Dr. Patrick Williams, past NCAFP president and NC Medical Society President-Elect Dr. Karen Smith, NCAFP Exec. VP and CEO Greg Griggs, and others attended the ceremony at the Governor’s Mansion in Raleigh. (They're pictured above with Gov. Stein and Dr. Cedric Bright, President of the Old North State Medical Society.)
“As today’s budget proves, we can work together to get things done,” Gov. Stein said. “I am eager to keep at it with the General Assembly to keep building on our momentum to create a North Carolina that’s safer, stronger, and more prosperous with opportunity for every person.”
This long-awaited budget authorizes $34.4 billion in spending and includes three key policy priorities for Family Medicine and the NCAFP. First, the budget extends the Primary Care Payment Reform Task Force through 2028. In addition, the budget includes language that requires health plans to comply with any Task Force request for data related to health care investment on primary care services. This could lead to additional recommendations to the General Assembly over the next two years.
The budget also doubles the award amount that certain medical students can apply for in Forgivable Education Loans for Service. Medical students interested in practicing primary care or psychiatry in rural areas of North Carolina can receive up to $50,000 a year up front (up to $200,000 total) for medical school, which would be forgiven if they work in a rural area in these targeted specialties one year for each year they receive the scholarship.
Finally, the budget provides funding for Medicaid for the entire fiscal year that will end June 30, 2027, avoiding the need to ask for additional funding later in the fiscal year. The budget also includes some funding to extend the Medicaid Healthy Opportunity Pilots in NC.
The NCAFP would like to thank the leadership of both the NC House and the NC Senate for recognizing these key health care needs and understanding the importance of primary care. We would also like to thank Gov. Stein for signing the budget that included these important priorities.
The North Carolina Academy of Family Physicians, Inc. (NCAFP) is a nonprofit professional association headquartered in Raleigh which represents over 4,300 family physicians, family medicine residents, and medical students across the state. It is the largest medical specialty association in North Carolina and is a constituent chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians, based in Leadwood, KS.
