2
Physicians for Underserved Areas Act
4/8/2025, 8:27 PM
Summary of Bill S 1044
The bill addresses the issue of residency slots being lost when a hospital shuts down, which can have a significant impact on medical training programs and the availability of healthcare professionals. By making improvements to the redistribution process, this legislation seeks to ensure that these valuable training opportunities are not lost and that residents are able to continue their education in other healthcare facilities.
Specifically, the bill outlines a process for redistributing unused residency slots to other hospitals in the same geographic area or region. This will help to maintain the overall number of residency positions available and prevent disruptions to medical training programs. Overall, Bill 119 s 1044 aims to support the continued education and training of medical residents, ensuring that there is a sufficient supply of healthcare professionals to meet the needs of communities across the country.
Congressional Summary of S 1044
Physicians for Underserved Areas Act
This bill modifies how a hospital's residency positions are redistributed after it closes for purposes of graduate medical education payments under Medicare.
Under current law, if a hospital with an approved medical residency program closes, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) must redistribute the hospital's residency positions to other hospitals in the following order: (1) hospitals in the same core-based statistical area as the closed hospital, (2) hospitals in the same state as the closed hospital, (3) hospitals in the same region of the country as the closed hospital, and (4) other remaining hospitals. In order to receive the additional positions, hospitals must demonstrate a likelihood of filling the positions within three years.
The bill removes the requirement that the CMS prioritize hospitals in the same region of the country as the closed hospital. It also requires hospitals to demonstrate a likelihood of (1) starting to use the positions within two years, and (2) filling the positions within five years.
