(Washington,
D.C) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray applauded the announcement by the
Department of Health and Human Services that they have allocated $250 million
from the new health care reform law to strengthen and grow the primary care
workforce. This new investment, along with the additional workforce training
funding Senator Murray worked to secure in the new law, will help prepare the
health system to meet the demand for health care workers by training 16,000 new
doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants, and public health
workers over the next five years. As a senior member of the Senate Health
Committee, Senator Murray was the lead writer of the health care workforce
section in the new law and has been working closely with the administration on
its implementation.
“I worked hard to make
sure the new health care law makes the investments we need in training new
doctors and nurses in Washington state and across the country,” said Senator Patty Murray. “As we work to
make sure that all Americans have access to quality, affordable health care
coverage, we also need to ensure there are enough health care workers to
provide that care. I have been working closely with the administration as this
new law begins working to help families and health care providers. And I am
going to continue working to make sure we continue investing in primary care
and preventive medicine.”
The
American Academy of Family Physicians predicts that, if current trends
continue, the shortage of family doctors will reach 40,000 in a little more
than 10 years, as medical schools send about half the needed number of
graduates into primary medicine. The overall shortage of doctors may grow to
124,400 by 2025, according to a study by the Association of American Medical
Colleges.
The
investment announced today includes the following initiatives to support the
growth of our health care workforce:
- Creates
additional primary care residency slots:
$168 million for training more than 500 new primary care physicians by 2015;
- Encourages
students to pursue full-time nursing careers: $30 million for transitioning over 600 part-time nursing
students to full-time students so that they have better odds of completing
their education; -
Increases access to providers in underserved
areas: The
Affordable Care Act builds on the important work of the National Health Service
Corps (NHSC) to address the nation’s workforce demands. The NHSC repays
educational loans and provides scholarships to primary care health care
providers who practice in areas of the country that have too few health care
professionals to serve people who live there. Eligible providers include
primary care physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners.
The Affordable Care Act provides $1.5 billion over five years to expand the
National Health Service Corps. This builds on a $300 million investment
in the NHSC in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The combined
nearly $2 billion investment is expected to result in an increase of more than
12,000 additional primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician
assistants by 2016. -
Focuses on career training: The
Department of Labor is providing job training across the health care sector
with a focus on low-skill and low-wage workers. In FY 2010 and 2011, the
Department is making grants available to community colleges, consortia of
community colleges, two-year Hispanic-Serving Institutions or Historically
Black Colleges, Workforce Investment Boards, and other training institutions
for the development or expansion of career pathway programs that prepare
workers for careers in the health care sector. These programs build on
efforts already underway. In fact, today, the Department of Labor is
announcing the release of $14.7 million in new grants made possible by the
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. These funds will support projects
designed to provide health care training and virtual service-delivery models to
promote career opportunities in the health care sector. -
Provides financial assistance for
students: The Department of
Education currently makes more than $150 billion in aid available to
students to help pay for undergraduate and graduate education, through a
combination of grants, loans, work study, and tax credits. The Affordable
Care Act increases the Federal government’s investment in Pell Grants by $40
billion, to ensure that all eligible students receive an award and that these
awards are increased in future years to help keep pace with the rising costs of
a college education.
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