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- CAP Urges Passage of Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act
The CAP strongly supports the bipartisan Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021 introduced in the House and Senate. The legislation would expand the physician workforce and ensure patient access to physician services. The CAP called on Congress to pass the bill this year.
In two letters to the House and Senate bill co-sponsors, the CAP and nearly 70 medical, physician, and health care groups asked Congress to support the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act as a recent study indicated that a physician shortage in the US is coming. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the United States could see a shortage of up to 139,000 physicians by 2033.
“This is particularly alarming given that more than two of five currently active physicians will be 65 or older within the next decade, raising concerns about the impact of physician retirement,” the letters stated. “Additionally, the US population is continuing to both grow and age, and access issues persist in rural and underserved areas.”
The vast majority of graduate medical education (GME) funding comes from the federal Medicare program. The Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021 would gradually raise the number of Medicare-supported GME positions by 2,000 per year for seven years, for a total of 14,000 new slots.