LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans is considering opening a three-year medical school program in Lafayette for medical students interested in general practice in rural areas.
LSUHSC New Orleans’ Rural Scholars program allows medical students interested in working as primary care physicians to spend their final two years of medical school in Lafayette. 
“We have had this program for 10 years and it has been small,” said Richard DiCarlo, Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Education at LSUHSC New Orleans. “We only have about two students in their third year at the program. It has been a very successful program if you think what percentage of those students that go into rural primary care.”
DiCarlo said Louisiana has a shortage of general practitioners. According to the U.S. Department of Public Health, the ratio of patient to primary-care physicians in rural Louisiana is 1,925 to one.
The purpose of this Lafayette based program to encourage medical students to go into general practice in Louisiana.
The plan will expand Lafayette’s current program. Students will receive their medical schooling in a condensed three-year program instead of a standard four-year program.
Similar to the old program LSUHSC New Orleans Rural Scholars program students will do their clinical rotations with general practitioners in the area to gain experience.
Alex Knijn, a biology and pre-med junior, said the program would be a great opportunity for students interested in general practice.
DiCarlo said many medical schools around the country have begun implementing shortened three-year medical  programs to streamline physician’s training.
Knijn said he thinks many students will be interested in this new program for the shortened curriculum.
“The year off of med school is really tempting,” Knijn said.
LSUHSC Chancellor Larry Hollier, Lafayette City-Parish President Joey Durel and State Treasurer John Kennedy met to discuss this new medical program. 
“I’m encouraged that we can make this idea a reality,” Kennedy posted on Twitter
LSUHSC New Orleans Director of External Relations, Chris Vidrine said LSUHSC New Orleans cannot determine a timeline for the Rural Scholars program until funding is figured out.
Vidrine said the Rural Scholars program has had trouble recieving state funding. When the Rural Scholars program opened in 2001, 20 slots were available, but the number of slots diminished to five because of a lack of funding.
The new program will initially hold 40 medical school students at a campus in Lafayette.
“We need to find funding but it doesn’t need to be state funds,” Vidrine said. “It needs to be a reasonable solution.”