As used in this article, and Article 2 (commencing with Section 128250), the following terms have the following meanings:

(a)“Family physician” means a primary care physician and surgeon who is prepared to and renders continued comprehensive and preventative health care services to individuals and families and who has received specialized training in an approved family medicine residency, including training in geriatric medicine, for three years after graduation from an accredited medical school.

(b)“Primary care physician” means a physician who is prepared to and renders continued comprehensive and preventative health care services, and has received specialized training in the areas of internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, or pediatrics.

(c)“Associated” and “affiliated” mean that relationship that exists by virtue of a formal written agreement between a hospital or other health care delivery system and an approved medical school that pertains to the primary care or family medicine training program for which state contract funds are sought.

(d)“Commission” means the California Healthcare Workforce Policy Commission.

(e)“Programs that train primary care physician’s assistants” means a program that has been approved for the training of primary care physician assistants pursuant to Section 3513 of the Business and Professions Code.

(f)“Programs that train primary care nurse practitioners” means a program that is operated by a California school of medicine or nursing, or that is authorized by the Regents of the University of California or by the Trustees of the California State University, or that is approved by the Board of Registered Nursing.

(g)“Programs that train registered nurses” means a program that is operated by a California school of nursing and approved by the Board of Registered Nursing, or that is authorized by the Regents of the University of California, the Trustees of the California State University, or the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, and that is approved by the Board of Registered Nursing.

(h)“Teaching health center” means a community-based ambulatory patient care center that operates a primary care residency program. Community-based ambulatory patient care settings include, but are not limited to, federally qualified health centers, community mental health centers, rural health clinics, health centers operated by the Indian Health Service, an Indian tribe or tribal organization, or an urban Indian organization, and entities receiving funds under Title X of the federal Public Health Service Act (Public Law 91-572).

There is hereby created a state medical contract program with accredited medical schools, teaching health centers, programs that train primary care physician’s assistants, programs that train primary care nurse practitioners, programs that train registered nurses, hospitals, and other health care delivery systems to increase the number of students and residents receiving quality education and training in the primary care specialties of family medicine, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, and geriatric medicine, or in nursing and to maximize the delivery of primary care and family physician services to specific areas of California where there is a recognized unmet priority need for those services.