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FAIR Act Reintroduced as H.R. 751 to Pave the Way for Residency Fairness

Published February 06, 2023

By AACOM Government Relations

Advocacy Federal Policy GME OME Advocate

On February 2, 2023, U.S. Representatives Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Sam Graves (R-MO) and Jared Golden (D-ME) reintroduced the Fair Access In Residency (FAIR) Act (H.R. 751), bipartisan legislation that would require federally funded graduate medical education (GME) programs to equitably accept and assess DO and MD residency candidates. 

"As our nation faces a physician shortage, with rural and underserved areas already in crisis, it is imperative that all medical students have an equitable path to residency training,” said AACOM President and CEO Robert A. Cain, DO. “We thank Reps. Harshbarger, Pingree, Graves and Golden for their leadership in addressing osteopathic medical students’ unfair barriers in applying to federally funded residency training. We also appreciate the  50 national and state organizations who’ve joined us in supporting this vital bill. Correcting the persistent and prevalent inequities faced by DO students, many of whom will go on to practice in rural and medically underserved communities, is crucial to improving healthcare access.”
"I am proud to lead legislation that has the ability to transform accessibility to DOs across the country and strengthen our physician pipeline, especially in rural and underserved areas. It’s critical that Congress ensures our taxpayer-funded residency training programs are fairly and equitably deploying all the best talent of tomorrow’s doctors and specialists, from both DO and MD educational backgrounds,” said Harshbarger. “This bill is a step toward ensuring transparency and equality in our taxpayer-funded GME programs, with the ultimate goal of increasing the number of physicians trained and serving our communities.”

Learn more about the legislation and urge your Members of Congress to cosponsor the FAIR Act (H.R. 751) or introduce a Senate companion bill. 

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