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- GME Advocacy Coalition Ask President, Congressional Leaders to Support Medicine in Infrastructure Bills
The Graduate Medical Education Advocacy Coalition (the Coalition), made of almost 60 medical and health groups, including the CAP, asked President Biden and congressional leadership in the House and Senate for increased federal support for physician training in upcoming legislative infrastructure bills. The CAP strongly supports any federal effort to boost funding for graduate medical education (GME).
In the May 18 letter, the Coalition said, “Physicians are a vital part of our health care infrastructure, and it is critical that we train more in order to meet the needs of our diverse and growing nation, ensure patient access to care, and prepare for the next public health crisis.
“The United States is facing a shortage of between 54,100 and 139,000 physicians by 2033 – a dearth that is almost certain to be exacerbated by rising rates of physician burnout and early retirement due to the COVID-19 pandemic.” A shortage would be devasting for patient access, especially in rural communities nationwide.
The coalition, which includes the American Medical Association, the Association of American Medical Colleges, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American College Surgeons, discussed how Congress recently provided 1,000 new Medicare-supported GME positions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021, which the CAP supported. However, more is needed to increase the number of physicians substantially.
The vast majority of GME funding comes from the federal Medicare program. The Medicare program pays for direct GME – costs of educating residents – and indirect medical education to cover the higher costs of teaching hospitals. Resident physicians who graduate from medical school typically spend three to seven years in GME training at teaching hospitals and their associated outpatient settings.