OME Advocate Newsletter

On February 24, 2026, the House Ways & Means Subcommittee on Health held a pivotal hearing on “Advancing the Next Generation of America’s Health Care Workforce.” The hearing focused on worsening physician shortages and how federal policy, especially Medicare Graduate Medical Education (GME), can help expand and strengthen the nation’s physician workforce. Witnesses, including Thomas J. Mohr, MS, DO, vice president of medical affairs and dean of the Sam Houston State University College of Osteopathic Medicine, highlighted the urgent need for more GME investment and innovative approaches to residency training, particularly in rural and underserved communities where shortages are most acute.

Dr. Mohr emphasized osteopathic medicine’s community-based training model and how it trains DOs to address access gaps, noting that osteopathic physicians are disproportionately more likely to enter primary care fields and serve underserved communities. He also outlined ongoing barriers within GME, including obstacles for osteopathic graduates, and highlighted the Fair Access In Residency (FAIR) Act, H.R. 2314/S. 2715, as a solution. Lastly, he advocated for modernization of Medicare GME policy to support distributed training models, rural hospitals and community-based residency programs, arguing that doing so would better align federal investment with workforce outcomes. Throughout his testimony, he positioned osteopathic medicine as a key partner in strengthening the physician pipeline and ensuring that federal GME investments directly support access to care in underserved communities.

FAIR Act original sponsor Representative Carol Miller (R-WV) expressed her appreciation for osteopathic representation during the hearing and stressed the importance of the bill, not only to West Virginia, but to all rural areas.

As our country grapples with worsening physician shortages, we've got to eliminate the unnecessary barriers that prevent highly qualified osteopathic medical students from accessing residency opportunities. For a rural state like my own, we cannot afford artificial barriers to physician distribution, particularly when DOs play such a vital role in primary care.

-U.S. Representative Carol Miller (R-WV)

Other witnesses centered their remarks on system-level sustainability, warning that financial instability among rural hospitals threatens existing training capacity and future physician pipelines. Stakeholder groups also pressed for targeted, accountable GME expansion, arguing that new residency slots should be strategically directed to high-need specialties and communities rather than layered onto the current distribution model.

Learn more about the hearing in AACOM’s press release and urge Congress to support the FAIR Act today.

Leaders in osteopathic medical education joined federal officials at an event hosted by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and U.S. Department of Education (ED) Secretary Linda McMahon to highlight a national initiative to strengthen nutrition training for future physicians.

AACOM President and CEO Robert A. Cain, DO, joined the Secretaries and other leaders, providing opening remarks and emphasizing that nutrition education and lifestyle counseling align closely with osteopathic medicine’s whole-person approach to care and long-standing focus on prevention.

If we are serious about prevention and addressing chronic disease, nutrition must be a part of the conversation. Our schools have long taught nutrition, but this initiative creates an opportunity to rethink learning outcomes, to innovate and to improve interactions with patients when care plans are discussed.

-AACOM President and CEO Robert A. Cain, DO

View the live streamed event and a clip from Dr. Cain's remarks to learn more.

AACOM commends Senators John Curtis (R-UT) and Angus King (I-ME) for introducing the bipartisan, bicameral Community Training, Education, and Access for Medical Students (TEAMS) Act, S. 3989. The bill is a companion to H.R. 3885, which establishes a new Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant program to increase medical school clinical rotations through partnerships between osteopathic and allopathic medical schools and Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) and other healthcare facilities located in medically underserved communities. The Community TEAMS Act is supported by more than 50 national and state healthcare organizations.

AACOM applauds Senators Curtis and King for their leadership in expanding clinical training opportunities where they are needed most. Medical students who train in underserved communities are nearly three times more likely to remain there to practice. The Community TEAMS Act would strengthen the physician workforce while helping communities address persistent access-to-care challenges.

-AACOM President and CEO Robert A. Cain, DO

Too many rural communities in Utah and across the country struggle to recruit and retain physicians. Our bipartisan legislation will help train the next generation of doctors while strengthening our rural health systems and improving families’ access to care.

-U.S. Senator John Curtis (R-UT)

For many people in Maine, especially in rural parts of our state, accessing basic medical care can mean driving hours for an appointment. The Community TEAMS Act will help attract the next generation of health care workers from the ground up and improve access to care for families across Maine. That’s not just smart policy, that’s a people-first approach that will positively impact the health, safety, and economy of our state.

-U.S. Senator Angus King (I-ME)

FQHCs and RHCs are community-based facilities that serve more than 31 million patients at more than 14,000 locations. These facilities provide training opportunities for medical students, but 80 percent of physician training still occurs outside of these settings in academic medical centers. The Community TEAMS Act increases access to healthcare, and addresses workforce shortages, as medical students who train in underserved areas are almost three times more likely to practice in underserved communities and four times more likely to practice primary care in those settings.

Rick Woychik, PhD, senior advisor to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) director for the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) strategy, spoke at the recent AACOM Board of Deans meeting. A molecular geneticist by training, Dr. Woychik previously served as director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Toxicology Program.

The event provided COM deans with a better understanding of the MAHA framework and the new unified funding strategy within NIH. Dr. Woychik highlighted opportunities for greater collaboration with COMs and was provided insights into what osteopathic medicine has to offer NIH. This engagement is another important step in AACOM’s targeted strategy for increased osteopathic research and representation across all NIH institutes and councils.