In May, AACOM endorsed the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2009 (RPSRA).  AACOM signed a letter, circulated by the American Osteopathic Association, to the bill's sponsors in support of the legislation:  http://blogs.do-online.org/media/2/20090522-DR_5-22-09_JointAdvocacyLetter.pdf.  The letter was signed by 75 osteopathic organizations. 

RPSRA would expand the number of Medicare-supported physician residency training positions by 15 percent, or roughly 15,000 slots.  Preference would be given to hospitals that apply for primary care, general surgery, or slots that emphasize community-based training.  Additional preference would be given to:  (1) hospitals in states with fewer Medicare-supported residency slots than medical students; and (2) hospitals with low resident physician-to-population ratios.  The legislation would require that all time spent by a resident physician in nonhospital settings be counted towards the determination of full-time equivalency for the purposes of payments for direct graduate and indirect medical education costs, without regard to the setting in which the activities are performed, if the hospital continues to incur the costs of the resident's stipends and fringe benefits during the time spent in that setting.  The legislation would permit Medicare indirect GME reimbursement for educational activities that occur in the hospital as well as Medicare direct GME reimbursement for educational activities that occur in clinical nonhospital settings, such as community health centers and other community-based ambulatory care sites.  Finally, the legislation would allow residency slots in hospitals that close to be redistributed to nearby teaching hospitals so that these slots are not lost upon hospital closure.

Please watch for AACOM action alerts regarding this important legislation.