MacArthur, Lance introduce bipartisan bill to fix New Jersey’s doctor shortage

U.S. Reps. Tom MacArthur (R-NJ) and Leonard Lance (R-NJ) this summer unveiled a bipartisan bill that would train more doctors to provide care in their home state, which has among the nation’s highest rates of practicing physicians over the age of 60 and ranks 46th nationwide in the percentage of physicians aged 40 or younger, according to the Association of American Colleges (AAMC).

“We must ensure our state’s hospitals and clinics continue to expand and provide new generations of doctors the opportunity to succeed,” said Rep. MacArthur.

The Advancing Medical Resident Training in Community Hospitals Act of 2018, H.R.6056, was introduced on June 8 by U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), with Reps. Lance and MacArthur joining three New Jersey Democrats as original cosponsors.

The U.S. Senate version, S. 1291, was introduced last June by U.S. Sens. Dean Heller (R-NV), Rob Portman (R-OH) and Bill Nelson (D-FL), among others.

The bill would amend the Social Security Act to establish rules for payment for graduate medical education (GME) costs for hospitals that establish a new medical residency training program after hosting resident rotators for short durations, according to the congressional record.

New Jersey is estimated to need an additional 2,500 to 2,800 physicians by 2020 to meet residents’ healthcare needs, according to AAMC, which reported the Garden State also ranks 37th nationally in medical students as a share of the total population, with roughly 24 medical students per 100,000 people.

“This bill protects our state’s health care industry from the imminent threat of a physician shortage by ending outdated, bureaucratic regulations that hinder medical students from continuing their training in residency positions,” Rep. MacArthur said in an Aug. 8 statement released by the bill’s sponsors.

The proposal would increase competition among New Jersey hospitals, which due to a 1997 budget cap on graduate medical education slots has meant that some of their doctor-in-training programs have lacked the needed spaces for training, the congressmen said.

“We need the top medical students to come to New Jersey and call it home,” Rep. Lance said. “We need their genius and passion and we need to fix the training slot miscalculation to make it happen.”

Rep. Gottheimer pointed out that New Jersey’s health care industry “is critical to our economy and to keeping our residents and communities safe,” and added that being in the midst of a physician shortage “threatens to undermine our quality of care and economic competitiveness.”

“This critical bipartisan legislation will help correct arbitrary and outdated regulations in order to attract more graduate medical students to our state, which will help keep our communities safe and healthy and grow our economy,” said Rep. Gottheimer.

H.R. 6056 is under consideration in the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee. S. 1291 is being reviewed by members of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee.