U.S. Rep Frank Pallone recently penned a letter urging the Health Resources and Services Administration to increase funding for the training of physicians and dentists under the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program.
Four notes:
1. The Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program focuses on training healthcare providers in rural and underserved communities.
2. The letter requested that the agency increase funding by $10,000 per resident before the next academic year begins July 1, according to a May 10 news release from the American Dental Association.
3. Funding for each resident was originally set at $150,000 when the program was established more than a decade ago. Funding was only ever increased by $10,000 in 2021, Mr. Pallone wrote in his letter.
4. Mr. Pallone added that the current $160,000 allocated for each resident is $50,000 less than the national median for training costs, leaving training centers to cover outstanding costs.