What This Bill Does
This bill changes the rules for hospitals that receive Medicare payments for training doctors in residency programs. Starting in 2024, hospitals must report information about how many applicants they receive from osteopathic medical schools (schools that teach osteopathic medicine, which emphasizes the whole body) versus allopathic medical schools (traditional medical schools), and how many from each type they accept. The bill also requires hospitals to publicly confirm they accept applicants from both types of medical schools and treat certain medical licensing exams equally.
Who It Affects
Hospitals that operate approved medical residency training programs and receive Medicare payments for graduate medical education costs. The public also is affected, as information becomes available online about which types of medical school graduates hospitals accept.
Key Provisions
- Hospitals must submit annually to the Secretary of Health and Human Services the number of applicants from osteopathic and allopathic medical schools, plus how many from each type were accepted (Sec. 2(a))
- Hospitals must affirm they accept applicants from both osteopathic and allopathic medical schools (Sec. 2(a))
- If an examination score is required for acceptance, hospitals must equally accept both the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination of the United States (COMLEX-USA) and the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) (Sec. 2(a))
- The Secretary of Health and Human Services must publish all submitted information on a public website for each year starting in 2024 (Sec. 2(b))
What Changes
Hospitals must now collect and report data about medical school type when applicants apply for residency positions. This information becomes publicly available online. Hospitals that do not submit this information cannot be considered approved programs for Medicare payment purposes.
Important Definitions
- Osteopathic medical schools: schools that train doctors in osteopathic medicine
- Allopathic medical schools: traditional medical schools
- COMLEX-USA: Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination of the United States
- USMLE: United States Medical Licensing Examination
- Graduate medical education: training that doctors receive after medical school in residency programs
Effective Date
Requirements begin with the year 2024 (Sec. 2(a))
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 751
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require as a condition
of satisfying the definition of an approved medical residency training
program for purposes of payments under Medicare for costs related
to graduate medical education for hospitals operating such a program
to submit information to encourage more equitable treatment of osteo-
pathic and allopathic candidates in the residency application and review
process, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 2, 2023
Mrs. HARSHBARGER (for herself, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. GRAVES of Missouri, and
Mr. GOLDEN of Maine) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee
on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require
as a condition of satisfying the definition of an approved
medical residency training program for purposes of pay-
ments under Medicare for costs related to graduate med-
ical education for hospitals operating such a program
to submit information to encourage more equitable treat-
ment of osteopathic and allopathic candidates in the resi-
dency application and review process, and for other pur-
poses.
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•HR 751 IH
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fair Access In Resi-
4
dency Act’’ or the ‘‘FAIR Act’’.
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SEC. 2. ENCOURAGING MORE EQUITABLE TREATMENT OF
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OSTEOPATHIC
AND
ALLOPATHIC
CAN-
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DIDATES IN RESIDENCY APPLICATION AND
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REVIEW PROCESS.
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(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1886(h)(5)(A) of the So-
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cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(h)(5)(A)) is amend-
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ed by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Such term shall
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not include a program operated by a hospital, with respect
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to a year (beginning with 2024), unless such hospital sub-
14
mits to the Secretary for such year—
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‘‘(i) the number of applicants for resi-
16
dency in such program who are from osteo-
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pathic medical schools and the number
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who are from allopathic medical schools;
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‘‘(ii) the number of such applicants
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who were accepted into such program from
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each of such types of medical school; and
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‘‘(iii) an affirmation that—
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‘‘(I) the hospital accepts appli-
24
cants for such program from both os-
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•HR 751 IH
teopathic
and
allopathic
medical
1
schools; and
2
‘‘(II) if an examination score is
3
required for acceptance in such pro-
4
gram, the Comprehensive Osteopathic
5
Medical Licensing Examination of the
6
United States (COMLEX–USA) and
7
the United States Medical Licensing
8
Examination (USMLE) are equally
9
accepted.’’.
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(b) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary of Health and
11
Human Services shall publish on a public website the in-
12
formation described in clauses (i) and (ii) of section
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1886(h)(5)(A) of the Social Security Act, and the affirma-
14
tion described in clause (iii) of such section, submitted by
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each approved medical residency training program for
16
each year (beginning with 2024).
17
Æ
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