Bipartisan Legislation to Address Doctor Shortage
Washington, D.C. — Last week, Rep. David B. McKinley, P.E. (R-WV) and Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV) introduced the bipartisan Physicians for Underserved Areas Act. This legislation aims to address the doctor shortage in West Virginia. Specifically, this legislation would help address the nationwide physician shortage by updating the Graduate Medical Education (GME) slot process following a hospital closure to prioritize sending federally funded medical residency slots to areas where doctors are most needed.
“From cancer to diabetes to substance abuse, West Virginia faces many health challenges,” said Rep. McKinley. “However, access to care is often hampered by a shortage of physicians and other medical professionals, especially in rural communities. This common sense bill will help address this problem by incentivizing doctors to train and practice in West Virginia and other regions that face similar shortages.”
“Our state’s severe doctor shortage means that too many Nevadans are going without the care they need,” said Rep. Lee. “Nevada ranks 48th in the nation when it comes to primary care physicians per capita and all 17 of Nevada’s counties are designated as health professional shortage areas. We must do more to get Nevada families the health care they need, and that means we need to make it possible for more doctors to train and practice medicine here in Nevada. I’m proud to introduce this bipartisan legislation to help close the gap by bringing more residency slots and physicians to Nevada.”
BACKGROUND:
The bipartisan Physicians for Underserved Areas Act would revise the GME process to give medical residency programs in areas with physician shortages a greater chance of gaining available residency slots after hospital closures elsewhere in the country. The legislation also would continue to prioritize keeping medical residency slots local and within the same state when hospitals close and would update the requirement for quickly filling GME slots.