HR3670-119

What This Bill Does

The IHS Provider Expansion Act adds a new Office of Graduate Medical Education Programs to the Indian Health Care Improvement Act. The IHS Secretary, acting through the Service, must establish the Office to create a pipeline for health care professionals, paraprofessionals, and other health-related professionals to participate in residency and fellowship programs. The Office must oversee existing residency and fellowship programs at IHS facilities, facilitate additional residency programs that support recruitment and retention, serve as the central hub for IHS residency programs, work with academic institutions, and coordinate medical student, elective rotation, and education track programs. The Secretary must also establish an interagency working group, consulting VA, Labor, HRSA, and CMS, to help launch and sustain the Office. The working group reports to Congress 120 days after enactment and every three months thereafter, and terminates after ten years. The bill authorizes not less than $4 million for fiscal year 2027 and at least $4 million for each subsequent fiscal year, subject to appropriations.

Who Benefits and How

IHS facilities benefit from a central office focused on residency and fellowship pipelines. Tribal patients benefit if expanded training programs improve recruitment and retention of clinicians in IHS facilities. Medical residents and fellows benefit from more IHS-based training slots and rotations. Academic medical institutions benefit from formal coordination with IHS training programs. Health workforce planners benefit from ten years of interagency planning and quarterly congressional reports.

Who Bears the Burden and How

IHS administrators must create the graduate medical education office and manage residency coordination. VA, Labor, HRSA, and CMS staff must participate in the interagency working group. Congressional health committees must review quarterly reports on implementation and sustainability. Federal taxpayers bear the cost of at least $4 million per year in authorized funding.

Key Provisions

• Establishes an IHS Office of Graduate Medical Education Programs.
• Requires the Office to create health workforce pipelines and oversee IHS residency and fellowship programs.
• Requires coordination with academic institutions, medical student programs, rotations, and education tracks.
• Creates a VA, Labor, HRSA, and CMS interagency working group with quarterly reports for ten years.
• Authorizes not less than $4 million for fiscal year 2027 and each subsequent fiscal year.