Senator Roth, Assemblymember Medina Urgent Push for UC Riverside Medical School Funding

Riverside Senator Richard D. Roth and Assemblymember Jose Medina testified today before the Senate education budget subcommittee. They delivered a joint letter requesting an allocation of $15 million needed to fund the UC Riverside School of Medicine.

The Senator and Assemblymember’s urgent request was made as the rapidly growing Inland Southern California region continues to be identified as having the most severe shortage of primary care doctors in all of the United States.

Senator Roth said, “The UC Riverside Medical School is absolutely critical to meeting the very basic healthcare needs of the residents of Inland Southern California. With the implementation of the national Affordable Care Act, our underserved region will face even more demand for doctors and healthcare providers.  It’s time the state steps up and does its part to fund the medical school. We cannot afford to be skipped over again and our community deserves no less.”

Assemblymember Medina said, “State funding is vital for the UCR medical school to operate at full capacity.  This school will be unique in its focus to deliver healthcare utilizing existing community health clinics in our region. This is a model for California to rapidly meet desperate health care needs and the state should recognize we are leading the way to provide accessible community based care. The people of our region have waited too long for the basic healthcare services they need.”

The letter from Senator Roth and Assemblymember Medina is attached.