Idaho
‘I would like to be less 50th:’ Task force continues work on physician shortage
West Virginia — like Idaho, a rural, mountainous state — has 4,914 doctors, ranking 24th in physicians per capita.
Idaho has 3,504 doctors, ranking 50th in the nation.
Idaho could take some ideas from West Virginia, as it looks to attract new doctors into its state. But it might come down to what Idaho can afford for scholarships and loan forgiveness, as it competes with other states with lavish mineral, oil and gas resources.
“I think we’re going to have to be a little bit more creative,” State Board of Education Executive Director Jennifer White said Monday, as a state working group held its third meeting to address Idaho’s physician shortage.
Formed by the 2025 Legislature, the working group will report to lawmakers and Gov. Brad Little before the start of the 2026 session — with a new blueprint for partnering with medical schools in the region. A new law calls for the state to add another 30 publicly funded medical school seats over the next three years, while some lawmakers have suggested severing or cutting back Idaho’s 50-year partnership with the University of Washington’s WWAMI program, which now takes 40 Idaho students per year.
That’s where Idaho has put its medical education-related tax dollars. WWAMI — named for its member states of Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho — will receive $7.5 million this year. A smaller partnership with the University of Utah will receive $3.1 million.
Other small states have tried other approaches, according to State Board research presented Monday.
A combined admissions program offers undergraduate admission to the University of New Mexico and conditional admission to the university’s medical school — an incentive geared to students committed to stay in the state to practice medicine.
West Virginia offers targets loan forgiveness for graduates who commit to working in underserved areas. The state has ample space in its public medical schools for in-state students and keeps tuition affordable, White said. West Virginia also sponsors high school and college programs that are designed to encourage students to consider a career in medicine.
The mutlipronged approach impressed Dr. Ted Epperly, a working group member who is the State Board’s graduate medical education coordinator. And while loan incentives have become the vehicle of choice in many states — and Idaho has a Rural Physician Incentive Program, partially state-funded, which offers up to $100,000 over four years — he said scholarships would also help medical school students on the front end.
“I think we’re ready for some scholarships in Idaho,” he said.
Two powerful forces contribute to the state’s physician shortage, and its No. 50 ranking for doctors per capita. The state’s doctors are aging. And the state is growing rapidly — leaving doctors to serve an ever-larger pool of patients.
It means Idaho might need to add 1,500 doctors just to get to the middle of the pack in doctors per capita, said Tracy Farnsworth, president of the Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine, a for-profit medical school in Meridian.
Dr. Rayme Geidl, a working group member and the University of Idaho’s interim regional WWAMI dean, offered a more modest goal.
“I would like to be less 50th,” she said.
The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Monday, April 20, 2026.
Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 20.
Winning Powerball numbers from April 20 drawing
09-17-36-47-64, Powerball: 26, Power Play: 3
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 20 drawing
Day: 9-5-5
Night: 1-3-9
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 20 drawing
Day: 9-3-4-7
Night: 6-9-2-8
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from April 20 drawing
05-07-31-41-43, Star Ball: 07, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 20 drawing
05-12-27-33-45
Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 20 drawing
19-37-40-41-53, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
I remember watching a documentary about Idaho’s wildlands. A narrator said there were probably many parts of the state where no human being has ever set foot. I believe that, but I stay relatively close to the highways. If I were 30 years younger, I would probably enjoy exploring the back country, but today, unless a plane takes me in and out, it’s not happening. I can’t say definitively that there is one spot that I find better than others. We’re surrounded by beautiful terrain, however. One place keeps calling me back.
Like a Scene from a Legendary Movie
When I go over the mountain between Gooding and Fairfield, I take time to stop at the overlook above the Camas Prairie. It reminds me of a scene in Exodus, where the Paul Newman character takes an American woman to look across a flat plain leading to Mount Tabor. He explains that’s the site where Deborah gathered her armies. It makes me feel there is something godly about the Camas Prairie. I keep going back to this spot. Sometimes I take along a folding chair and sit and look at the world below.
Slow Down and See the Work of the Creator
Fairfield may be nothing more than a blip as people speed down Route 20, but it’s their loss. On the other side of the highway is some of the prettiest country in Idaho. It’s going to be a lot less lush this spring, but drought conditions haven’t been nearly as severe in the central highlands. But if I’m granted a few more years by the Almighty, I plan to see the prairie for many more springs.
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Gallery Credit: Mateo, 103.5 KISS FM
The results are in for the Idaho Lottery’s draw games on Sunday, April 19, 2026.
Here’s a look at winning numbers for each game on April 19.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 9-5-1
Night: 8-0-6
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from April 19 drawing
Day: 2-7-0-3
Night: 4-3-3-3
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Idaho Cash numbers from April 19 drawing
15-28-31-38-45
Check Idaho Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from April 19 drawing
32-42-52-53-55, Bonus: 05
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Idaho Lottery drawings held ?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 3: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Pick 4: 1:59 p.m. (Day) and 7:59 p.m. (Night) MT daily.
- Lucky For Life: 8:35 p.m. MT Monday and Thursday.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- 5 Star Draw: 8 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Idaho Cash: 8 p.m. MT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a USA Today editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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