Reid bill seeks to bring doctors to Nevada

WASHINGTON -- A bill that seeks to bring more doctors-in-training to Nevada and other states with physician shortages was introduced in Congress on Tuesday.

The measure seeks to build flexibility into the Medicare program that subsidizes graduate medical training, said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the bill sponsor.

Medical school graduates must complete a hospital residency -- a three- to seven-year training process -- before they can be licensed as doctors. The government influences the supply by how much Medicare funding it provides hospitals for such training.

Congress in 1996 capped the number of Medicare-funded residents for hospitals, so in the past decade, the number of medical residents has not kept pace in fast-growing states such as Nevada.

Reid's bill provides authorization for an additional 5,000 positions to be funded at hospitals over their caps, and another 10,000 slots would be apportioned among states that are underserved and that meet other criteria, Reid aides said.

"By increasing the funding for these positions, Nevada's hospitals will be better positioned to keep up with growing demand," Reid said in a statement.

"Resident physicians tend to stay where they are trained, so investing in residency training for the next generation keeps more qualified doctors in the Silver State," he said.