HAGERSTOWN, Md. (DC News Now) -- The final phase of construction for a new medical school in Hagerstown is underway. It will be the third medical school in Maryland and will help meet the growing need for medical providers in the region. "We have two fantastic medical schools in Maryland: University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins," Dr. Maulik Joshi, president and CEO of Meritus Health, said. "But it is not enough." Advocates in West Virginia pushing for childcare tax credits Construction of the facility includes dormitories adjacent to the school and hospital complex. "The United States needs 124,000 physicians," Dr. Paula Gregory, dean of the Meritus School of Osteopathic Medicine, said. "We are short 58 physicians at this very time in the Meritus system. So training future physicians is very important to us." The first class of the new medical school will start next year.