U.S. lawmakers have introduced bipartisan legislation to reauthorize and increase funding for a program that intends to address medical and dental workforce shortages in rural and urban areas.
U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin, D-IL, and Marco Rubio, R-FL, introduced the Restoring America's Health Care Act, which includes a three-year reauthorization that would double mandatory funding for the National Health Service Corps scholarship and loan repayment program. Funding for the program, which aims to recruit more doctors, dentists, and other healthcare professionals to underserved areas, expires on September 30, 2023.
If the legislation passes, the program will increase from $310 million to $625 million in the fiscal year 2024 and climb to $825 million in the fiscal year 2026.
The ADA and the following professional organizations support the legislation:
- The Association of Clinicians for the Underserved
- The National Association of Community Health Centers
- The American Medical Association
- The American Hospital Association
- The American Academy of Family Physicians
- The PA Education Association
- The Council on Social Work Education
- The Illinois Health and Hospital Association
