DETROIT (AP) — Universities and hospitals across Michigan are working to head off an impending doctor shortage fueled by the nation's aging baby boomer population.

The state's first new medical school in four decades is set to open in 2010 and existing schools are expanding their campuses and admitting bigger classes.

Those training future physicians also hope that many of the new doctors will stay in Michigan when they're done with school, helping revive the state's troubled economy while improving health care.

"People should not have to leave their community to get state-of-the-art medical care," said Marsha Rappley, Michigan State University's dean of the College of Human Medicine. The medical school is expanding from East Lansing into Grand Rapids, which will become its base of operations. An April 21 groundbreaking ceremony is planned for its new medical education building.

And on the other side of the state, Oakland University and Beaumont Hospitals are moving forward on their plans for a new medical school that is expected to admit its first class in 2010.

"We want that knowledge to be used within our community to serve people better," said Virinder K. Moudgil, vice president for academic affairs and provost at Oakland University in Rochester.

Other schools in the state also are looking at starting medical schools as part of a nationwide medical education boom, the first since an earlier growth spurt ended more than three decades ago.

Policymakers reined in the growth of medical programs after the mid-1970s, fearing an oversupply of physicians. But in the late 1990s, new data showed that more doctors would be needed to care for the aging baby boomer population.

The Association of American Medical Colleges has recommended a 30 percent increase in enrollment by 2015. This should be done, the association said, by boosting enrollment and creating new medical schools.

"People over 65 use twice as many physician services as those under 65," said Edward Salsberg, director of the AAMC's Center for Workforce Studies. "All the major chronic illnesses are illnesses that afflict the elderly."

And last month, the Michigan Department of Community Health said an estimated 41 percent of active physicians in the state indicate they only plan to practice medicine for one to 10 more years, compared with 38 percent in 2005. The estimate was based on mail and online responses in late 2006 and early 2007 from about 5,350 of the state's about 40,000 licensed physicians

"These findings suggest we are going to have to step up efforts to meet the increasing demand for medical care in Michigan," MDCH Director Janet Olszewski said.

Oakland University and Beaumont Hospitals' medical school will be privately funded, and have a presence on both the school's campus and at Beaumont facilities. The process is under way to find a dean, Moudgil said, and details about a possible site for a building on OU's campus are being examined.

During the first two years, students would study at the university. For the final two years, they would be placed in clinical rotations at Beaumont's hospitals in Royal Oak and Troy, and at other hospitals. They also will take part in research at Oakland University during all four years, Moudgil said.

In Grand Rapids, Michigan State's expansion also is privately funded. The $90 million project includes the Secchia Center, a seven-story medical education building located in a downtown district where a cluster of hospitals, research laboratories, educational facilities and medical specialty buildings has been taking shape.

The school currently trains physicians at six community campuses, including East Lansing and Grand Rapids, and has 493 students. The Secchia Center is scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2010. By 2013, the school will train about 800 students a year, including 350 in Grand Rapids and 250 in East Lansing.

In Detroit, Wayne State University School of Medicine, the nation's largest single-campus medical school, swelled its class size to 300 from about 270 two years ago in response to fears of a shortage.

And Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine, which has already increased its entering class in East Lansing from 147 to 200, is expanding by adding 50 students each at the Detroit Medical Center and Macomb Community College's University Center, raising its class size to 300.

Other Michigan universities are considering new medical schools. Western Michigan University President John M. Dunn asked the school to take a look at the possibility in Kalamazoo, noting two area hospitals already provide medical education through Michigan State University's medical school.

"We look at what is already in place on the ground. Assets that can be strategic in such a venture," said Bob Miller, associate vice president for community outreach, who is spearheading the effort with Dunn. "They're already here."

And Central Michigan University also is studying whether a medical school might work.

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On the Net:

Association of American Medical Colleges: http://www.aamc.org

Beaumont Hospitals: http://www.beaumonthospitals.com

Central Michigan University: http://www.cmich.edu

College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University: http://humanmedicine.msu.edu

Liaison Committee on Medical Education: http://www.lcme.org

Michigan Department of Community Health: http://www.michigan.gov/mdch

Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine: http://www.com.msu.edu

Oakland University: http://www.oakland.edu

Wayne State University School of Medicine: http://www.med.wayne.edu

Western Michigan University: http://www.wmich.edu