The AAMC, in cooperation with the Congressional Academic Medicine Caucus (CAMC), hosted a congressional briefing entitled “From The Match® to Medicine: The Post-Medical School Path for Doctors, and the Role of Medicare-Supported GME.” The May 9 briefing discussed The Match® process and the role of Medicare in graduate medical education (GME).
Speakers at the briefing included:
- Danielle Turnipseed, JD, MHSA, MPP, Chief Public Policy Officer at the AAMC.
- Geoffrey Young, PhD, Senior Director, Transforming the Health Care Workforce at the AAMC.
- Atul Grover, MD, PhD, Executive Director of the AAMC Research and Action Institute.
- Catherine Kuhn, MD, Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education at Duke Health.
- Len Marquez, Senior Director, Government Relations and Legislative Advocacy at the AAMC.
Welcoming attendees to the briefing, Turnipseed noted the importance of the CAMC in advocating for issues critical to medical schools and teaching hospitals and health systems. Then, Young began panelist presentations by providing an overview of The Match® process, including how residents enter The Match® and how unmatched residents secure positions or other paths. Later, attendees observed a presentation on Medicare-supported GME from Grover, who provided attendees with key background on the physician shortage and how the cap on Medicare-supported GME impacts physician workforce growth and patient access to care. Providing an institutional perspective, Kuhn noted the importance of Medicare-supported GME in Duke Health’s residency program and highlighting the mission-driven community work in which Duke Health engages. The briefing moderator, Marquez, ended the briefing by requesting that attendees consider asking members of congress to support the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2023 (H.R. 2389/S. 1302) and join the CAMC.