Central Louisiana News

U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, Catherine Cortez Masto, John Cornyn, and Michael Bennet have introduced a bipartisan draft legislation aimed at improving the Medicare Graduate Medical Education (GME) program. This initiative seeks to enhance funding for teaching hospitals to train more residents and fellows, addressing physician shortages in various communities across the United States.

Senator Cassidy emphasized the importance of residency locations by stating, “Doctors often practice where they do a residency. If it helps to get doctors to practice in rural and low-income areas, let’s put training programs in these areas!”

Senator Cortez Masto highlighted the healthcare challenges faced by rural areas: “Workforce shortages are straining our health care system, especially in rural areas, and we must do more to recruit, train and retain doctors in communities across Nevada.” She expressed her commitment to working on this bipartisan proposal to address gaps in the physician workforce.

Senator Cornyn pointed out that the proposed legislation would create new graduate medical education slots. He said it would "expand access to and improve the quality of behavioral health and primary care in rural communities across the Lone Star State."

Similarly, Senator Bennet noted that “Rural Coloradans shouldn’t have to travel long distances to see a doctor,” underscoring that this effort will help train and retain providers in underserved areas.

The GME program is supported by Medicare through payments made to teaching hospitals for physician training. In 1996, Congress imposed a cap on funding based on residency numbers due to concerns about an oversupply of physicians. However, current projections indicate a shortage of nearly 139,940 physicians by 2036. The draft legislation aims at modernizing Medicare GME so that each state can develop an adequate healthcare workforce.

The senators are inviting feedback on this draft until January 31, 2024.