OME Advocate Newsletter

Delivered twice-monthly right to your in-box, AACOM's OME Advocate keeps you informed and involved in policy discussions and legislation around healthcare, medical students and osteopathic medical education.


 

OME Advocate

June 16, 2025

What You Need to Know

Community TEAMS Act Reintroduced to Expand Clinical Rotations

Jun 16, 2025, 14:22 by AACOM Government Relations

AACOM thanks Representatives Carol Miller (R-WV), Marc Veasey (D-TX), Sam Graves (R-MO) and Troy Carter (D-LA) for reintroducing the Community Training, Education, and Access for Medical Students (Community TEAMS) Act of 2025H.R. 3885. This bipartisan bill would establish a new grant program within the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) to fund clinical rotations for medical students in rural and underserved areas.

“We need more medical school rotations in rural communities, as students who train in these areas are nearly three times more likely to return and serve them as physicians. With 64 percent of colleges of osteopathic medicine requiring clinical rotations in rural and underserved areas, this bill is a vital step toward expanding rural training opportunities, strengthening the physician workforce and improving healthcare access in communities that need it most.”

-Robert A. Cain, DO, AACOM president and CEO

“Americans in rural communities deserve the same quality of health care treatment as patients in more populated areas. The Community TEAMS Act gives medical students the ability to adapt to medical challenges that may arise while serving in rural communities and provides them with opportunities to practice medicine in the rural workforce. By training medical students in underserved areas of our country, we are laying the foundation for better health care in the U.S."

-Rep. Carol Miller (R-WV)

“In communities across the DFW area and throughout Texas, where many families rely on Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) for essential care, we need more medical professionals who are trained and ready to meet the needs of underserved populations. I am proud to help introduce the Community TEAMS Act, which will ensure that medical students gain the community-based training they need to serve communities like ours. By expanding medical training opportunities, we can improve health outcomes and make sure every patient, regardless of ZIP code or income, has access to high-quality care."

-Rep. Marc Veasey (D-TX)

 

More than three-quarters of all medical schools report concerns about the number of clinical training sites. By expanding training opportunities in rural and underserved areas, the Community TEAMS Act will increase healthcare access and strengthen the physician workforce in these communities. 

Learn more and urge Congress to cosponsor and pass the Community TEAMS Act, H.R. 3885!

AACOM Advocates

Register Today: Meet with Congress and Shape Policy at AACOM Advocacy Day 2025

Jun 16, 2025, 14:24 by AACOM Government Relations

Register now to join hundreds of osteopathic advocates from across the country at AACOM Advocacy Day for two powerful days of virtual training, inspiration and action on September 9 and 10, 2025. Attend live virtual sessions and urge Members of Congress to advance OME priorities. This free, virtual event will be for roughly two hours each day and is open to all members of the OME community. Further details about advocacy activities and live virtual sessions are forthcoming. Visit the Advocacy Day page for the latest updates and register today!

Raise Your Voice to Protect Medical Student Financial Aid!

Jun 16, 2025, 14:25 by AACOM Government Relations

With the House-passed One Big Beautiful Bill Act, H.R. 1, now in the Senate for consideration, harmful provisions that eliminate Grad PLUS loans, cap federal borrowing, limit Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) for medical residents and establish risk-sharing/accountability for higher education institutions continue to advance through the budget reconciliation process.

With a growing physician shortage, we cannot afford to enact policies that make it harder for COMs to train the next generation of doctors. Contact your elected officials today and urge them to protect the Grad PLUS Loan Program, oppose federal borrowing caps, maintain PSLF eligibility for medical residency and reject unfair risk-sharing/accountability policies that harm students and COMs.

Policy Update

Senate HELP Committee Introduces Draft Reconciliation Bill

Jun 16, 2025, 14:27 by AACOM Government Relations
  • On June 10, 2025, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee released its draft version of budget reconciliation legislation targeting higher education and other programs.
  • Both the House and Senate versions propose major changes to student loans, including eliminating the Grad PLUS loan program and PSLF eligibility and capping federal borrowing.
    • The Senate proposal caps professional loans at $50,000 per year and $200,000 total while the House version caps professional loans at $150,000 total with no annual cap.
  • The Senate’s accountability provision significantly differs from the House's risk-sharing approach. Under the Senate proposal, a professional program would lose eligibility for federal student loans if its graduates’ average earnings ten years after enrollment fall below the average salary of 25–34-year-old bachelor’s degree holders. In contrast, the House bill proposed a risk-sharing model based on a debt-to-earnings ratio that financially penalizes institutions for unpaid student loans incurred by their graduates.
  • Last week, the House also moved to address potential Senate roadblocks for their reconciliation bill through adoption of a “deeming resolution” incorporating technical fixes to ensure their bill complies with the Senate’s Byrd Rule.
  • For more information on the HELP Committee proposal and a comparison with the House bill, see AACOM’s summary. We will continue to advocate against provisions that will harm the OME community and encourage you to contact your congressional offices to share how these changes will make it harder to train the next generation of doctors.

Take Action!

Administration’s FY26 Budget Includes Restructuring and Spending Cuts

Jun 16, 2025, 14:28 by AACOM Government Relations
  • On May 30, 2025, the administration released further details on its fiscal year (FY) 2026 Budget Request as a follow-up to the “Skinny Budget” released in early May.
  • The U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) budget request provides $94.7 billion, a $32.65 billion cut from $127.35 billion in FY24, including:
    • $27.5 billion for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a cut of $19.8 billion from $47.3 billion in FY24, while reorganizing it into eight Institutes. It would also implement a 15 percent cap on facilities and administration research costs.
    • $4.3 billion for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a $4.9 billion cut from $9.2 billion in FY24.
  • The budget would reorganize HRSA, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), several CDC centers and more under the newly created Administration for a Healthy America (AHA). The budget justification for AHA is $20.6 billion and includes:
    • The elimination of 14 Health Workforce Programs under Title VII and VIII.
    • The elimination of the Children’s Hospital Graduate Medical Education program.
    • Increases to the Teaching Health Centers Graduate Medical Education and the National Health Service Corps.
  • The U.S. Department of Education (ED) budget request for FY26 provides $66.7 billion, a $16.6 billion cut from $83.3 billion in FY24, which reflects the desire to wind down ED, and includes $949.67 million in discretionary funds for higher education programs.
  • AACOM has concerns with the elimination of and funding reductions for key workforce programs and is developing an advocacy strategy to protect them.
  • For more information, see AACOM’s summary.

Senate Holds Hearings on NIH and ED Funding

Jun 16, 2025, 14:29 by AACOM Government Relations
  • On June 10, 2025, NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, testified during a Senate subcommittee hearing on the NIH FY26 budget request.
  • Director Bhattacharya defended the request and its aim to streamline research, focus on preventing cancer deaths and better understand childhood diseases.
  • On June 3, 2025, ED Secretary Linda McMahon testified during another Senate subcommittee hearing on the ED FY26 budget request.
  • Secretary McMahon outlined a plan to reduce ED’s discretionary budget to streamline operations and transfer certain federal functions to other agencies, like moving student loan borrowing to the Small Business Administration (SBA).

Engagement and Resources

Engagement & Resources

Jun 16, 2025, 14:30 by AACOM Government Relations

VCOM-Louisiana Advocates for the Future of Family Medicine at the State Capitol: VCOM-Louisiana students and faculty traveled to the state capitol in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for White Coat Wednesday, partnering with the Louisiana Academy of Family Physicians to engage directly with state legislators. Throughout the day, participants attended committee meetings, discussed pressing healthcare challenges and highlighted the critical role of family medicine in addressing patient needs across Louisiana. Learn more.

Apply to AACOM’s Compassionate Community Grant: AACOM is pleased to announce the Compassionate Community Grant, an exclusive funding opportunity for colleges of osteopathic medicine. This opportunity offers grants ranging from $2,500 to $10,000 to support innovative, compassion-driven projects across the OME community. Applications are now open and will close on July 10, 2025. Learn more.

Apply to HRSA’s Faculty Loan Repayment Program: Applications are being accepted through July 3 for HRSA’s Faculty Loan Repayment Program. Awardees will have a portion of their health professional student loan debt ($40,000 max over two years) repaid. In return, they must serve at an eligible health professions school. Learn more.

Apply to the STAR Loan Repayment Program: Applications are now being accepted for the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Recovery Loan Repayment Program. Eligible substance use disorder treatment clinicians and community health workers can apply through July 10, 7:30 PM ET. Learn more.

Submit Public Comment on THCGME Program Reconciliation: HRSA is seeking comments on the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education (THCGME) Program Reconciliation Tool burden estimate. Submit comments by July 15, 2025. THCGME program award recipients are encouraged to respond. Learn more.

Apply to HRSA Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Program: Apply for up to $100,000 in loan repayment through HRSA’ Pediatric Specialty Loan Repayment Program. Applications are accepted through July 17, 7:30 p.m. ET. Learn more.

HRSA Seeking Public Comment for Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students Program Specific Form: HRSA seeks to collect data on the Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students (SDS) Program Specific Form, which will assist the agency in making funding decisions for SDS program awards. The SDS Program grants awards to eligible schools to provide scholarships to full-time, financially needy students from disadvantaged backgrounds enrolled in health professions programs. Submit comments no later than July 28, 2025. Learn more.

Submit Public Comment on THCGME Program Chart: HRSA will submit an information collection request (ICR) on the THCGME Program Eligible Resident or Fellow full-time equivalent (FTE) Chart, published in the THCGME Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which is a means for determining the number of eligible resident or fellow FTEs in an applicant's primary care residency program. Submit comments by July 28, 2025. Teaching Health Centers applying for THCGME funding through a THCGME NOFO process, which may include new applicants and existing awardees, are encouraged to respond. Learn more.


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