December 12, 2024
On December 9, Sen. Tina Smith (D-MN) and Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced legislation to improve access to healthcare and address the physician shortage in rural areas.
The Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2024 would authorize the Rural Residency Planning and Development Program to continue providing start-up funding to rural hospitals, medical schools, and other organizations to establish new rural residency programs.
Among current medical residency programs, only 2% of residency training occurs in rural areas, and in Minnesota, 80% of counties qualify as mental health professional shortage areas. The Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2024 will help address the health care provider shortages by supporting the training of more clinicians in rural areas.
“When I meet with families, farmers, businesses and Tribal and community leaders in rural Minnesota, one of the first issues that comes up is health care,” Smith said. “There is a severe lack of access to healthcare in rural communities in Minnesota and across the country, and this bill is the first step to addressing that problem. Establishing more residency programs at rural hospitals and medical schools will incentivize doctors and nurses to work in these areas, help address physician shortages, and ensure Minnesotans living in small towns and rural places have access to the care they deserve.”
May 29, 2025
As the Legislature works to complete its work on the state’s two-year budget, another deadline is looming. Legislators are required to pass a balanced budget before the end of the fiscal year—June 30, 2025. If they don’t meet that deadline, the state will begin a partial shutdown.
May 29, 2025
Registration has opened for the Empowering Physicians: A Night of Reflection and Engagement event, featuring best-selling author Elisabeth Rosenthal, MD.
May 29, 2025
The AMA is encouraging physicians to contact their U.S. senators and urge them to revise the reconciliation bill passed recently by the U.S. House of Representatives. While the bill includes language that would stabilize Medicare physician payments, it also threatens to cripple Medicaid and CHIP.