A study submitted to the Maine Legislature on Monday found that opening a public medical school in Penobscot County is not financially feasible.
The University of Maine System submitted a feasibility study conducted by Tripp Umbach, a medical education consulting firm, to the Maine Legislature on Monday after being directed to do so in 2023.
The study, which found that the University of Maine was “the only logical institution to establish a future public medical school,” stated the costs to build, operate and maintain a standalone public medical school make the project impractical.
The Legislature’s goal for the study was to find if opening a public medical school would address the critical shortage of physicians that Maine is facing, especially in rural areas. The shortage has forced hospitals to hire costly traveling staff and has lowered the doctor-to-patient ratio across the state.
“Maine is at a defining crossroads as the state confronts an aging population, widespread physician shortages, and escalating demand for healthcare services, along with pressures that are felt most acutely in rural and underserved regions,” the study said.
If started in 2026, the program would require $210.5 million in funding over three years and would open in 2029. Raising that funding through private and public appropriations is “potentially unrealistic for Maine,” the study said.
Tuition, which would start at $50,000 a year per student, would grow revenue from $2.5 million in the first year operating to $24 million in the ninth year, but other investments would still be needed, the study said.
There’s also no guarantee that graduates would stay in Maine and combat the physician shortage.
There are more than 220 open physician positions across the state, the study found. But due to a lack of residency programs and the fact that Maine produces just one third of the national average of medical school applications would make filling the shortage an uncertainty.
“Retaining locally trained physicians requires robust in-state residency opportunities, strong clinical infrastructure, and coordinated retention strategies, conditions that Maine currently lacks,” the study said.
An average of 96 Mainers a year applied for medical school in the past five years, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges.
Where a student completes their residency program is the largest indicator of where they will practice, the study said, but residency programs can’t be expanded without increased medical education in the state.
Most medical school graduates in Maine leave the state for residency, the study found.
The UMaine System created a task force on Monday to review the study, President and Vice Chancellor Joan Ferrini-Mundy said.
The task force will discuss the findings with various stakeholders, including the Board of Trustees, system administration, health care providers and medical schools already established in the state, Ferrini-Mundy said.
Members of the task force have not yet been decided, Ferrini-Mundy said.
“What do we do with this is kind of the next big step, and it’s always exciting to be a part of a discussion that’s about something that’s going to matter for the state of Maine,” Ferrini-Mundy said.
UMaine could be positioned to launch a medical school program in the next five to 10 years because of its health and biomedical research capabilities, the study said.
The state should also be open to reconsidering Maine’s medical education within the next three years to see “if financial conditions improve, or if new partnerships with hospitals, private investors, or philanthropic donors emerge,” the study said.
