[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 140 (Tuesday, September 20, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H6254-H6255]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1620
CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL GME SUPPORT REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2011
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 1852) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize
support for graduate medical education programs in children's
hospitals.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1852
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 ``Children's Hospital GME
Support Reauthorization Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. PROGRAM OF PAYMENTS TO CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS THAT
OPERATE GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS.
(a) In General.--Section 340E of the Public Health Service
Act (42 U.S.C. 256e) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by striking ``through 2005 and each
of fiscal years 2007 through 2011'' and inserting ``through
2016'';
(2) in subsection (f)(1)(A)(iv), by striking ``2011'' and
inserting ``2016''; and
(3) in subsection (f)(2)(D), by striking ``2011'' and
inserting ``2016''.
(b) Report to Congress.--Section 340E(b)(3)(D) of the
Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 256e(b)(3)(D)) is
amended by striking ``Not later than the end of fiscal year
2011'' and inserting ``Not later than the end of fiscal year
2015''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr.
Doyle) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts).
Mr. PITTS. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1852, the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical
Education Support Reauthorization Act of 2011, would enable the
Department of Health and Human Services to continue to provide funding
to freestanding children's hospitals to support the training of
pediatricians and other residents. This funding is critical to ensuring
the adequacy of the pediatric workforce in the United States.
The program was first enacted by Congress in 1999 with wide
bipartisan support and has been reauthorized twice. Since the enactment
of the bill, the number of pediatricians trained has increased by 35
percent.
The week we marked up this bill, I met 10-year-old Anna Lipsman. Anna
is a bright, outgoing young girl who is fighting leukemia. Diagnosed
just a few months ago, Anna spent 2 weeks undergoing treatment at the
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. She is successfully fighting her
disease, but will still need additional treatments over the next 2\1/2\
years. Anna is a strong, personal reminder of why I introduced this
bill.
With the reauthorization of H.R. 1852, we hope to send a clear
message to the Obama administration and the Department of Health and
Human Services that this bill is important to ensuring that children
receive adequate health care.
I would like to thank Mr. Pallone and all the 114 cosponsors that
worked on this legislation.
I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. DOYLE. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Children's Hospital Graduate
Medical Education Support Reauthorization Act, offered by my good
friends, Mr. Pitts and Mr. Pallone. I know Mr. Pallone is on his way to
the floor and will be speaking shortly. This critical legislation will
reauthorize the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education program
through 2016 to ensure that our children have access to the care they
need and deserve, and I urge my colleagues to pass this bill with
unanimous support.
The original bipartisan program was enacted over a decade ago to
provide children's hospitals across the country with the Federal
support to implement and carry out necessary residency training
programs. Last year alone, over 50 children's hospitals received
funding to carry out these training programs. Today, over 40 percent of
pediatricians and pediatric specialists are trained through the
Children's Hospital Graduate Medical Education program. This program is
vital to maintaining the pediatric workforce and ensuring children's
access to the highest levels of pediatric care provided in this
country.
The Children's Hospital GME program is a critical investment in our
children's health, and I am proud today that we will vote to
reauthorize this hugely successful program.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PITTS. I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from
New Jersey (Mr. Lance), a member of the subcommittee.
Mr. LANCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1852,
legislation to reauthorize the Children's Hospital Graduate Medical
Education program.
Today's legislation will assist pediatric training programs across
the country by maintaining and strengthening existing hospital graduate
medical education programs for children.
Independent children's hospitals have an indispensable role in the
children's health workforce, training 40 percent of all pediatric
residents and 43 percent of pediatric specialty fellows, and providing
pediatric training for many other residents. Nowhere is this more
evident than Children's Specialized Hospital in Mountainside, New
Jersey, in the district I have the honor of serving. Under the strong
leadership of my friend, Amy Mansue, the staff does an excellent job
training and caring for children and making sure that highly
[[Page H6255]]
qualified, effective medical personnel exist.
I thank Health Subcommittee Chairman Pitts for his tremendous work in
this effort, as well as Ranking Member Pallone. And I thank them for
working in a bipartisan capacity to bring this legislation to the
floor. I am honored to serve on Chairman Pitts' subcommittee, and I am
pleased that the full Energy and Commerce Committee has agreed with
what we have tried to accomplish in the subcommittee.
I urge all of my colleagues here in the House of Representatives to
support H.R. 1852. It is essential that this program be reauthorized.
Mr. DOYLE. Mr. Speaker, it appears the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr.
Pallone) is not here yet. His flight was late getting in.
Therefore, I have no requests for time, and I yield back the balance
of my time.
General Leave
Mr. PITTS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
insert extraneous materials into the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
There was no objection.
Mr. PITTS. In conclusion, I would like to thank the ranking member of
the subcommittee, Mr. Pallone, for his leadership on this issue. It has
been a bipartisan effort on the Health Subcommittee and Energy and
Commerce Committee.
I urge all Members to support the Children's Hospital Graduate
Education Support Reauthorization Act, and I yield back the balance of
my time.
Ms. JACKSON LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of
H.R. 1852, ``The Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of
2011,'' would amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize
payments to children's hospitals operating training programs that
provide graduate medical education. These payments would be made to
hospitals for both direct and indirect costs related to graduate
medical education.
Americans across our nation need care, and the Children's Hospital
GME (CHGME) program has been utilized by hospitals across our country
to train doctors who can provide that care. I represent the 18th
District which is home to the Methodist Hospital System, one of the
largest medical institutions in the world. In 2010, the Methodist
Hospital System graduated sixty-nine doctors from the resident CHGME
program. That is 69 additional doctors who will meet our growing health
care needs. H.R. 1852 will allow Houston to continue to recruit and
train so many talented doctors.
Overall, freestanding children's hospitals have increased their
medical resident training programs by 35 percent since 1999. If CHGME
is allowed to expire we will lose the gains we have made in this field.
There is no reasonable argument for allowing this program to expire as
it provides a great benefit at a marginal cost. For this fiscal year,
the program has spent .0085 percent of the federal budget. This small
expenditure allows children's hospitals to train more than 5,600 full-
time equivalent residents--more than one third of our nation's
pediatricians.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the nation
could face a shortage of as many as 150,000 doctors in the next 15
years. The funds generated from this legislation will help train the
medical professionals we desperately need. In a time when there are
growing health disparities within our nation. It is important to
address the needs of underserved urban areas. The more medicinal
professionals we train there is an increase likelihood that these
underserved communities will have access to proper medical care.
The program supports 56 hospitals nationwide and trains more than
5,000 medical residents each year. It started 12 years ago as an effort
to provide children's hospitals with funding for residencies and
fellowships. There are other federal programs to assist residency
funding exist; however, the CHGME program caters to pediatrics, while
others are open to all teaching hospitals.
This funding is vital as it will help to cover the cost of 5,600
pediatric residencies at more than 50 children's hospitals across the
United States. Forty percent of the nation's pediatricians and 43
percent of pediatric subspecialists receive training from the program.
We must train the very professionals who will one day save the life of
a child.
The CHGME pays for the salaries of medical students and compensate
hospitals for patient care costs that are often higher in teaching
hospitals than non-teaching hospitals. We should provide the funds
necessary to train students in a profession that will benefit society.
I support this legislation because it will increase the quality of
medical training in the United States. I believe that H.R. 1852
improves upon a system that sets the bar for medical care
internationally. Through government funding, the program has succeeded
in bolstering research potential at these institutions as well as
helping to cure a problem that supersedes political boundaries:
children's illness. This bill creates positive effects that cross party
lines, and I urge my distinguished colleagues to vote a resounding and
unified ``yes.''
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Pitts) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1852.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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