Congress May Finally Be Addressing The Nation’s Doctor Shortage

There may finally be momentum to lifting a cap that Congress put on Medicare-funded residency slots nearly three decades ago under the Resident Physician Shortage Act, introduced this summer by Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate and U.S House of Representatives. In this photo is the U.S. Capitol is shown June 5, 2003 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Stefan Zaklin/Getty Images)

Getty Images

There may finally be bipartisan momentum to lifting a cap that Congress put on Medicare-funded residency slots nearly three decades ago.

The Association of American Medical Colleges for years has been working with members of Congress to find ways to increase federal support for medical education and residency slots, in particular. Medicare health insurance for the elderly is the primary source for graduate medical education (GME) in the U.S., but the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 capped the number of residents and fellows in an effort to reign in federal spending.

But legislation signed into law by Republican President Donald Trump in his first term and a second phase under Democratic President Joe Biden added some new slots such as when new teaching hospitals open or rural hospitals add new programs. But the 1,200 or so residency slots funded under those respective year-end spending packages signed under those administrations won’t put a dent in a physician shortage projected at up to 86,000 physicians by 2036, the AAMC says.

Lately, members of Congress are feeling the heat from their constituents, particularly in rural areas about the shortage of physicians. That shortage could also worsen following the passage of Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cuts $1 trillion from Medicaid and health plans under the Affordable Care Act and is expected to eliminate health insurance coverage for nearly 12 million Americans over the next decade, data from the Congressional Budget Office shows.

“What we are trying to do is increase the cap . . . so we can have more residency programs so we can start to stem the shortfall (of physicians),” U.S. Sen. John Boozman, an Arkansas Republican, said earlier this week during an interview on “The Julie Mason Show” on SiriusXM’s POTUS Politics channel discussing ways to ensure quality healthcare in rural America.

Boozman and fellow Senators Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat, Republican Susan Collins of Maine and Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York this summer introduced the Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025. This bipartisan legislation would help grow the physician workforce and improve access to care for patients nationwide, the AAMC says.

The legislation would gradually increase the number of Medicare-funded residency positions by 14,000 over seven years, “making key investments in physician training in rural and urban communities across the country,” the AAMC says.

“Patients across the country are already feeling the effects of a strained physician workforce,” said Dr. David J. Skorton, president and chief executive officer of the AAMC, which includes 160 U.S. medical schools and nearly 500 academic health systems and teaching hospitals as its members.

“This crucial bill, along with its House companion, would build upon recent bipartisan success to expand federal support for residency training and improve access to care for patients everywhere,” Skorton added. “This legislation represents a strong, bipartisan commitment to expanding the physician workforce and improving health care outcomes.”