"I will try to address this problem."
That promise demonstrates the power family physicians can exert by developing relationships with their U.S. representatives and senators.
Rep. Ralph Regula, R-Ohio, chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies, made the promise during House floor debate on appropriations. The pledge followed a series of events set into motion in April when FP Anne Montgomery, M.D., of Spokane, Wash., visited the congressional office of Rep. Cathy McMorris, R-Wash.
On June 23, McMorris stood on the floor of the House and appealed for restoration of Title VII support. Regula's response, which puts him on record as supporting funding for Title VII, revives the chances that the program will survive congressional budget cuts.
The exchange between McMorris and Regula resulted from a brief introduction between McMorris and Montgomery during the April Family Medicine Congressional Conference in Washington, D.C. Shortly after that introduction, McMorris' legislative aide, Jaime Herrera, requested a June 1 meeting with Montgomery and others at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane.
The Spokane meeting gave Montgomery and her colleagues a chance to discuss the difficulty of recruiting physicians to rural and underserved areas. Section 747 of Title VII of the Public Health Service Act provides funds to departments of family medicine at medical schools with the goal of increasing the number of family physicians, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
Rural America suffers a serious shortage of health care professionals, McMorris said during debate on the House floor. Title VII "plays a critical role in supporting programs that help train and bring health care professionals to rural areas of our country," she said.
"Retention rates of doctors who have been trained in rural areas within these states show that 89 percent of physicians who have been trained in rural areas have chosen to practice in rural areas," McMorris added. "Federal grants have been instrumental in the development of this innovative program. Congress needs to continue to invest in training in primary care medicine and dentistry, because in areas of critical need it is a vital resource used to ensure access to health care."
Despite McMorris' comments, the House zeroed out support for Section 747 in passing the appropriations bill. The legislation next goes to the Senate, which is scheduled to act on it by mid-July.
The AAFP issued an action alert asking members to urge their senators to support restored funding for Title VII. In addition, the Academy provided sample letters to the editor, an opinion column and a news release that chapters can submit to newspapers throughout their states.
A conference committee of representatives and senators is expected to reconcile differences in the two chambers' versions. Regula's promised action on Title VII funding would occur during the conference committee meeting.
