The California Legislature on Tuesday passed a bill that would chip in $2 million in the drive to create a medical school at the University of the Pacific in Stockton.
UOP is working to raise $150 million to build a School of Medicine. University officials say the program is the first of its kind in the Central Valley and comes at a critical time, as local communities face a shortage of physicians.
“The healthcare disparities in Stockton, in the county, in the Central Valley … are enormous. And they are growing,” UOP President Christopher Callahan told the Stockton City Council during a meeting in March. The university sought support from the city in a bid for $7 million in federal money to buy teaching equipment for the school.
The state funding was included in a budgetary bill that wended its way through the Capitol with help from California Sen. Jerry McNerney, D-Pleasanton, and Assemblymember Rhodesia Ransom, D-Stockton. Both of their districts include sections of Stockton.
“Our communities need more doctors and greater opportunities for students from the Central Valley to pursue a medical education,” McNerney said in a statement.
The U.S. is expected to face a shortage of up to 86,000 doctors by 2036, the Association of American Medical Colleges projected in 2024. A California Health Care Foundation report listed the San Joaquin Valley as already lacking the recommended number of primary care physicians.
“Right now, we have just 47 primary care physicians for every 100,000 residents, and families across the Central Valley are waiting too long or traveling too far to get the care they need,” Ransom said in a statement. “That’s why securing this state investment to help bring a medical school to Stockton matters so much.”
UOP offers nearly 20 distinct health profession programs across its three campuses. The university recently announced it is launching a new degree program aimed at nurses who want to train as midwives.
Stockton Mayor Christina Fugazi has said a UOP School of Medicine could have far-reaching benefits and be transformational for the city.
“We’re not talking just about education. We’re talking about workforce development, access to healthcare, and economic transformation for the city of Stockton,” she said at a ceremony in May announcing the university’s intention to create the new school.
Callahan said the funding is invaluable as the university works to create “practice-ready” physicians who are prepared to serve local communities. The university plans to welcome its first cohort of medical students in 2030.
The bill now goes to Gov. Gavin Newsom for his signature.