Part E - Health Professions and Public Health Workforce

subpart 1 - health professions workforce information and analysis

42 USC 294n - Health professions workforce information and analysis

(a) Purpose
It is the purpose of this section to

(1) provide for the development of information describing the health professions workforce and the analysis of workforce related issues; and

(2) provide necessary information for decision-making regarding future directions in health professions and nursing programs in response to societal and professional needs.

(b) Grants or contracts
The Secretary may award grants or contracts to State or local governments, health professions schools, schools of nursing, academic health centers, community-based health facilities, and other appropriate public or private nonprofit">nonprofit entities to provide for

(1) targeted information collection and analysis activities related to the purposes described in subsection (a) of this section;

(2) research on high priority workforce questions;

(3) the development of a non-Federal analytic and research infrastructure related to the purposes described in subsection (a) of this section; and

(4) the conduct of program evaluation and assessment.

(1) In general
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section, $750,000 for fiscal year 1998, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1999 through 2002.

(2) Reservation
Of the amounts appropriated under subsection (a) of this section for a fiscal year, the Secretary shall reserve not less than $600,000 for conducting health professions research and for carrying out data collection and analysis in accordance with section 295k of this title.

(3) Availability of additional funds
Amounts otherwise appropriated for programs or activities under this subchapter may be used for activities under subsection (b) of this section with respect to the programs or activities from which such amounts were made available.

42 USC 294o - Advisory Council on Graduate Medical Education

(a) Establishment; duties
There is established the Council on Graduate Medical Education (in this section referred to as the Council). The Council shall

(1) make recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this section referred to as the Secretary), and to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate, and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, with respect to

(A) the supply and distribution of physicians in the United States;

(B) current and future shortages or excesses of physicians in medical and surgical specialties and subspecialties;

(D) appropriate Federal policies with respect to the matters specified in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), including policies concerning changes in the financing of undergraduate and graduate medical education programs and changes in the types of medical education training in graduate medical education programs;

(E) appropriate efforts to be carried out by hospitals, schools of medicine, schools of osteopathic medicine, and accrediting bodies with respect to the matters specified in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), including efforts for changes in undergraduate and graduate medical education programs; and

(F) deficiencies in, and needs for improvements in, existing data bases concerning the supply and distribution of, and postgraduate training programs for, physicians in the United States and steps that should be taken to eliminate those deficiencies; and

(2) encourage entities providing graduate medical education to conduct activities to voluntarily achieve the recommendations of the Council under paragraph (1)(E).

(b) Composition
The Council shall be composed of

(1) the Assistant Secretary for Health or the designee of the Assistant Secretary;

(2) the Administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration;

(3) the Chief Medical Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs;

(4) 6 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of practicing primary care physicians, national and specialty physician organizations, foreign medical graduates, and medical student and house staff associations;

(5) 4 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of schools of medicine and osteopathic medicine and public and private teaching hospitals; and

(6) 4 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of health insurers, business, and labor.

(1) In general; staggered rotation
Members of the Council appointed under paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) of subsection (b) of this section shall be appointed for a term of 4 years, except that the term of office of the members first appointed shall expire, as designated by the Secretary at the time of appointment, 4 at the end of 1 year, 4 at the end of 2 years, 3 at the end of 3 years, and 3 at the end of 4 years.

(2) Date certain for appointment
The Secretary shall appoint the first members to the Council under paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) of subsection (b) of this section within 60 days after October 13, 1992.

(d) Chair
The Council shall elect one of its members as Chairman of the Council.

(e) Quorum
Nine members of the Council shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings.

(f) Vacancies
Any vacancy in the Council shall not affect its power to function.

(g) Compensation
Each member of the Council who is not otherwise employed by the United States Government shall receive compensation at a rate equal to the daily rate prescribed for GS18 under the General Schedule under section 5332 of title 5 for each day, including traveltime,^[1] such member is engaged in the actual performance of duties as a member of the Council. A member of the Council who is an officer or employee of the United States Government shall serve without additional compensation. All members of the Council shall be reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and other necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of their duties.

(h) Certain authorities and duties

(1) Authorities
In order to carry out the provisions of this section, the Council is authorized to

(A) collect such information, hold such hearings, and sit and act at such times and places, either as a whole or by subcommittee, and request the attendance and testimony of such witnesses and the production of such books, records, correspondence, memoranda, papers, and documents as the Council or such subcommittee may consider available; and

(B) request the cooperation and assistance of Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, and such departments, agencies, and instrumentalities are authorized to provide such cooperation and assistance.

(2) Coordination of activities
The Council shall coordinate its activities with the activities of the Secretary under section 295k of this title. The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the Council and pursuant to the recommendations of the Council, take such steps as are practicable to eliminate deficiencies in the data base established under section 295k of this title and shall make available in its reports such comprehensive data sets as are developed pursuant to this section.

(i) Requirement regarding reports
In the reports required under subsection (a) of this section, the Council shall specify its activities during the period for which the report is made.

(j) Final report
Not later than April 1, 2002, the Council shall submit a final report under subsection (a) of this section.

(k) Termination
The Council shall terminate September 30, 2003.

(l) Funding
Amounts otherwise appropriated under this subchapter may be utilized by the Secretary to support the activities of the Council.

[1] So in original. Probably should be “travel time,”.

42 USC 294p - Pediatric rheumatology

(a) In general
The Secretary, acting through the appropriate agencies, shall evaluate whether the number of pediatric rheumatologists is sufficient to address the health care needs of children with arthritis and related conditions, and if the Secretary determines that the number is not sufficient, shall develop strategies to help address the shortfall.

(b) Report to Congress
Not later than October 1, 2001, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a report describing the results of the evaluation under subsection (a) of this section, and as applicable, the strategies developed under such subsection.

(c) Authorization of appropriations
For the purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2005.

subpart 2 - public health workforce

42 USC 295 - General provisions

(a) In general
The Secretary may award grants or contracts to eligible entities to increase the number of individuals in the public health workforce, to enhance the quality of such workforce, and to enhance the ability of the workforce to meet national, State, and local health care needs.

(b) Eligibility
To be eligible to receive a grant or contract under subsection (a) of this section an entity shall

(1) be

(A) a health professions school, including an accredited school or program of public health, health administration, preventive medicine, or dental public health or a school providing health management programs;

(B) an academic health center;

(D) any other appropriate public or private nonprofit">nonprofit entity; and

(2) prepare and submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.

(1) serving individuals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds (including underrepresented racial and ethnic minorities); and

(2) graduating large proportions of individuals who serve in underserved communities.

(d) Activities
Amounts provided under a grant or contract awarded under this section may be used for

(1) the costs of planning, developing, or operating demonstration training programs;

(2) faculty development;

(3) trainee support;

(4) technical assistance;

(5) to meet the costs of projects

(A) to plan and develop new residency training programs and to maintain or improve existing residency training programs in preventive medicine and dental public health, that have available full-time faculty members with training and experience in the fields of preventive medicine and dental public health; and

(B) to provide financial assistance to residency trainees enrolled in such programs;

(6) the retraining of existing public health workers as well as for increasing the supply of new practitioners to address priority public health, preventive medicine, public health dentistry, and health administration needs;

(7) preparing public health professionals for employment at the State and community levels; or

(8) other activities that may produce outcomes that are consistent with the purposes of this section.

(e) Traineeships

(1) In general
With respect to amounts used under this section for the training of health professionals, such training programs shall be designed to

(A) make public health education more accessible to the public and private health workforce;

(B) increase the relevance of public health academic preparation to public health practice in the future;

(D) develop educational methods and distance-based approaches or technology that address adult learning requirements and increase knowledge and skills related to community-based cultural diversity in public health education.

(2) Severe shortage disciplines
Amounts provided under grants or contracts under this section may be used for the operation of programs designed to award traineeships to students in accredited schools of public health who enter educational programs in fields where there is a severe shortage of public health professionals, including epidemiology, biostatistics, environmental health, toxicology, public health nursing, nutrition, preventive medicine, maternal and child health, and behavioral and mental health professions.

42 USC 295a - Public health training centers

(a) In general
The Secretary may make grants or contracts for the operation of public health training centers.

(b) Eligible entities

(1) In general
A public health training center shall be an accredited school of public health, or another public or nonprofit">nonprofit private institution accredited for the provision of graduate or specialized training in public health, that plans, develops, operates, and evaluates projects that are in furtherance of the goals established by the Secretary for the year 2000 in the areas of preventive medicine, health promotion and disease prevention, or improving access to and quality of health services in medically underserved communities.

(2) Preference
In awarding grants or contracts under this section the Secretary shall give preference to accredited schools of public health.

(c) Certain requirements
With respect to a public health training center, an award may not be made under subsection (a) of this section unless the program agrees that it

(1) will establish or strengthen field placements for students in public or nonprofit">nonprofit private health agencies or organizations;

(2) will involve faculty members and students in collaborative projects to enhance public health services to medically underserved communities;

(3) will specifically designate a geographic area or medically underserved population to be served by the center that shall be in a location removed from the main location of the teaching facility of the school that is participating in the program with such center; and

(4) will assess the health personnel needs of the area to be served by the center and assist in the planning and development of training programs to meet such needs.

42 USC 295b - Public health traineeships

(a) In general
The Secretary may make grants to accredited schools of public health, and to other public or nonprofit">nonprofit private institutions accredited for the provision of graduate or specialized training in public health, for the purpose of assisting such schools and institutions in providing traineeships to individuals described in subsection (b)(3) of this section.

(b) Certain requirements

(1) Amount
The amount of any grant under this section shall be determined by the Secretary.

(2) Use of grant
Traineeships awarded under grants made under subsection (a) of this section shall provide for tuition and fees and such stipends and allowances (including travel and subsistence expenses and dependency allowances) for the trainees as the Secretary may deem necessary.

(3) Eligible individuals
The individuals referred to in subsection (a) of this section are individuals who are pursuing a course of study in a health professions field in which there is a severe shortage of health professionals (which fields include the fields of epidemiology, environmental health, biostatistics, toxicology, nutrition, and maternal and child health).

42 USC 295c - Preventive medicine; dental public health

(a) In general
The Secretary may make grants to and enter into contracts with schools of medicine, osteopathic medicine, public health, and dentistry to meet the costs of projects

(1) to plan and develop new residency training programs and to maintain or improve existing residency training programs in preventive medicine and dental public health; and

(2) to provide financial assistance to residency trainees enrolled in such programs.

(b) Administration

(1) Amount
The amount of any grant under subsection (a) of this section shall be determined by the Secretary.

(2) Eligibility
To be eligible for a grant under subsection (a) of this section, the applicant must demonstrate to the Secretary that it has or will have available full-time faculty members with training and experience in the fields of preventive medicine or dental public health and support from other faculty members trained in public health and other relevant specialties and disciplines.

(3) Other funds
Schools of medicine, osteopathic medicine, dentistry, and public health may use funds committed by State, local, or county public health officers as matching amounts for Federal grant funds for residency training programs in preventive medicine.

42 USC 295d - Health administration traineeships and special projects

(a) In general
The Secretary may make grants to State or local governments (that have in effect preventive medical and dental public health residency programs) or public or nonprofit">nonprofit private educational entities (including graduate schools of social work and business schools that have health management programs) that offer a program described in subsection (b) of this section

(1) to provide traineeships for students enrolled in such a program; and

(2) to assist accredited programs health administration in the development or improvement of programs to prepare students for employment with public or nonprofit">nonprofit private entities.

(b) Relevant programs
The program referred to in subsection (a) of this section is an accredited program in health administration, hospital administration, or health policy analysis and planning, which program is accredited by a body or bodies approved for such purpose by the Secretary of Education and which meets such other quality standards as the Secretary of Health and Human Services by regulation may prescribe.

(c) Preference in making grants
In making grants under subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary shall give preference to qualified applicants that meet the following conditions:

(1) Not less than 25 percent of the graduates of the applicant are engaged in full-time practice settings in medically underserved communities.

(2) The applicant recruits and admits students from medically underserved communities.

(3) For the purpose of training students, the applicant has established relationships with public and nonprofit">nonprofit providers of health care in the community involved.

(4) In training students, the applicant emphasizes employment with public or nonprofit">nonprofit private entities.

(d) Certain provisions regarding traineeships

(1) Use of grant
Traineeships awarded under grants made under subsection (a) of this section shall provide for tuition and fees and such stipends and allowances (including travel and subsistence expenses and dependency allowances) for the trainees as the Secretary may deem necessary.

(2) Preference for certain students
Each entity applying for a grant under subsection (a) of this section for traineeships shall assure to the satisfaction of the Secretary that the entity will give priority to awarding the traineeships to students who demonstrate a commitment to employment with public or nonprofit">nonprofit private entities in the fields with respect to which the traineeships are awarded.

42 USC 295e - Authorization of appropriations

(a) In general
For the purpose of carrying out this subpart, there is authorized to be appropriated $9,100,000 for fiscal year 1998, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1999 through 2002.

(b) Limitation regarding certain program
In obligating amounts appropriated under subsection (a) of this section, the Secretary may not obligate more than 30 percent for carrying out section 295b of this title.