This legislation aims to promote more equitable consideration of osteopathic and allopathic medical school graduates in residency programs by amending the Social Security Act. It requires hospitals with approved medical residency training programs to submit specific data to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, fostering transparency in the application process. Hospitals must report the number of applicants and accepted candidates from both osteopathic and allopathic medical schools for each program. They are also required to affirm their policy to consider applicants from both types of schools and accept either the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX) or the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) scores, at the applicant's discretion, if an examination is a prerequisite. Failure to submit this required information will result in a 2 percent reduction in Medicare payments for the hospital for each prior fiscal year of non-compliance, beginning with fiscal year 2025 data. The Secretary of Health and Human Services will also be mandated to publish all submitted information on a public website to ensure public access and accountability, while explicitly stating that the bill does not federalize medical education or mandate the acceptance of a specific number of students from either osteopathic or allopathic medical schools.
This legislation aims to promote more equitable consideration of osteopathic and allopathic medical school graduates in residency programs by amending the Social Security Act. It requires hospitals with approved medical residency training programs to submit specific data to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, fostering transparency in the application process. Hospitals must report the number of applicants and accepted candidates from both osteopathic and allopathic medical schools for each program. They are also required to affirm their policy to consider applicants from both types of schools and accept either the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX) or the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) scores, at the applicant's discretion, if an examination is a prerequisite. Failure to submit this required information will result in a 2 percent reduction in Medicare payments for the hospital for each prior fiscal year of non-compliance, beginning with fiscal year 2025 data. The Secretary of Health and Human Services will also be mandated to publish all submitted information on a public website to ensure public access and accountability, while explicitly stating that the bill does not federalize medical education or mandate the acceptance of a specific number of students from either osteopathic or allopathic medical schools.