By — William Brangham William Brangham By — Madison Staten Madison Staten By — Solveig Rennan Sandbulte Solveig Rennan Sandbulte By — Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara By — Alexa Gold Alexa Gold By — Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert By — Juliet Fuisz Juliet Fuisz Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/video/horizons/2026/08/why-america-faces-a-primary-care-shortage-and-why-it-matters Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Story There's a critical need for primary care physicians across America, but a shortage of doctors and rising insurance costs are forcing people to forgo preventive care altogether. Americans die of preventable, treatable diseases at far higher rates than people who live in other similar nations. Horizons moderator William Brangham explores possible solutions with Dr. Lucy McBride and Renuka Rayasam. By — William Brangham William Brangham William Brangham is an award-winning correspondent, producer, and substitute anchor for the PBS News Hour. He also serves as the host of Horizons from PBS News. @WmBrangham By — Madison Staten Madison Staten By — Solveig Rennan Sandbulte Solveig Rennan Sandbulte Solveig Rennan Sandbulte is a producer of national affairs for PBS News Hour and Horizons. By — Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara Satvi Sunkara is a producer for PBS News. By — Alexa Gold Alexa Gold Alexa Gold is a producer for PBS News. By — Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert Zoie Lambert is an associate producer for PBS News. By — Juliet Fuisz Juliet Fuisz