A new medical school in the Hudson Valley could help solve a doctor shortage crisis that has plagued the Hudson Valley and the nation.

On Monday, standing at the Vassar Brothers Medical Center construction site in Poughkeepsie, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced his full support for the Marist Health Quest School of Medicine.

“I couldn’t be more excited to announce my full-fledged support for the Marist Health Quest School of Medicine here in the Hudson Valley," Schumer said in Poughkeepsie. "This top-notch facility will be located right here on the Vassar Brothers Medical Center campus, and eventually host 480 medical students per year."

In Septemeber, Marist College and Health Quest announced they were teaming up to provide physician education that transforms patient care and prepares new doctors for today's technologically advanced healthcare environment.

Schumer believes the new medical school will help address a doctor shortage that has plagued the Hudson Valley and upstate New York.

"This new med school will create jobs and both boost the Hudson Valley economy and address the region’s doctor shortage, as physicians who train in an area are more likely to end up practicing there."

A recent survey of hospitals by the Healthcare Association of New York State found that 71% said their current primary care capacity isn't enough to meet current patient needs. 77 percent reported a deficit to meet future needs. 81% percent of respondents indicated that primary care physicians are very difficult to recruit, according to a press release.

“With upstate New York and the entire nation facing a worsening physician shortage, the timing could not be better for the first-ever medical school in Dutchess County,” Greater New York Hospital Association President Kenneth E. Raske said. “Now the federal government must do its part by protecting graduate medical education funding and passing a common sense bill that will produce many more doctors in the years to come."

Schumer co-sponsored a bill which aims to battle the nation-wide doctor shortage by creating 15,000 new residency training slots.

"This doctor shortage plaguing Upstate New York is why I am proud to co-sponsor The Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act," Schumer said. "This bill tackles the doctor shortage head-on by creating 15,000 new residency training slots nationwide and prioritizing those slots for communities that need them most.”

Marist Health Quest School of Medicine plans to employ 100 people on a full-time basis and create construction jobs to build the facility. The medical school will accept 60 medical students in its first year and 120 students by its sixth year.

Schumer vowed to lead the charge in helping the Marist Health Quest School of medicine through its upcoming accreditation process.

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