[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2639 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2639

   To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the number of 
graduate medical education residency positions at medical facilities of 
      the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 22, 2014

  Ms. Baldwin introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 38, United States Code, to increase the number of 
graduate medical education residency positions at medical facilities of 
      the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Affairs Health Workforce 
Enhancement Act of 2014''.

SEC. 2. INCREASE OF GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION RESIDENCY POSITIONS AT 
              MEDICAL FACILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--Section 7302 of title 38, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e)(1) In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall 
establish medical residency programs, or ensure a sufficient number of 
residency positions in medical residency programs, at any medical 
facility of the Department that the Secretary determines is 
experiencing a shortage of physicians.
    ``(2) In carrying out paragraph (1), the Secretary shall--
            ``(A) determine the specialty of health care professionals 
        with respect to which each medical facility of the Department 
        for which the Secretary has made a determination under 
        paragraph (1) is experiencing a shortage of physicians, 
        including with respect to primary care and mental health;
            ``(B) allocate the residency programs and residency 
        positions under paragraph (1) based on the determination 
        required by subparagraph (A); and
            ``(C) notify Congress of the information used by the 
        Secretary to make the determination required by subparagraph 
        (A).''.
    (b) Five-Year Increase.--
            (1) In general.--In carrying out section 7302(e) of title 
        38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), during the 
        five-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall increase the 
        number of graduate medical education residency positions at 
        medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs by not 
        less than 2,000 positions.
            (2) Priority.--In increasing the number of graduate medical 
        education residency positions at medical facilities of the 
        Department under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give 
        priority to medical facilities that--
                    (A) as of the date of the enactment of this Act, do 
                not have a medical residency program; and
                    (B) are located in a community in which there is a 
                high need for health care for veterans.
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