S. 1044 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Mar 13, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryChanges how medical residency spots are redistributed
When a hospital closes its medical residency program, the spots for training new doctors get passed to other hospitals. This bill changes the rules for who gets those spots. Instead of spreading them across different regions of the country, it focuses redistribution on hospitals in the same area or state first. It also changes the timeline—hospitals now have two years to start using the spots and five years to fill them, instead of three years to fill them.
How it affects you
This mainly affects hospitals, medical schools, and doctors in training. If you live in an area where a hospital's residency program closes, this bill could mean the training spots go to a hospital closer to home rather than somewhere distant, which may help ensure your local area can still attract and train physicians for future care.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Mar 13, 2025)
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.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 1044
A BILL
Physicians for Underserved Areas Act
Sponsor: Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) · Introduced Mar 13, 2025 · Health · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Mar 13, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.”