State Policy · CA
California Funds First Pharmacist Pipeline Program at UC San Diego
California has allocated $3.6 million to launch PRIME Rx at UC San Diego's Skaggs School of Pharmacy, the first PRIME program housed at a pharmacy school. The program will fund scholarships for roughly 10 PharmD students per year over the four-year degree, with clinical training in community-based settings aimed at underserved areas including the U.S.-Mexico border region. The one-time funding is expected to sustain the program for three years while the school seeks permanent state support. UC San Diego is also partnering with Southwestern College on a separately funded pharmacy technician associate degree program to address broader workforce shortages.
Why it mattersExpanding the pharmacist pipeline to federally qualified health centers and tribal clinics could ease access bottlenecks for Medicaid beneficiaries in pharmacy deserts, but the funding's temporary nature leaves long-term workforce capacity uncertain.