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CAFM Requests that the House Fund Title VII Programs

April 2 — The House Appropriations Labor-HHS-Education Subcommittee heard testimony from public witnesses in a hearing last week.  CAFM submitted written testimony for the record regarding funding levels for Title VII, Section 747, which includes primary care training grants and programs.  We will submit similar testimony to the Senate Subcommittee later this month.  CAFM also initiated a letter, signed by AAFP and other primary care organizations, to House and Senate appropriators requesting $71 million for Title VII, Section 747 programs to allow for a new competitive grant cycle in FY 2013.

Fighting for Primary Care in the Appropriations Process

March 28—The release of President Obama's budget in February marked the beginning of appropriations season in Washington. The president's budget was followed by a House budget plan released last week by Representative Paul Ryan (R-WI), Chairman of the House Budget Committee. March and April are critical months in the appropriations process as members of the House and Senate consider these proposals and submit their own programmatic requests to committees, setting potential funding levels for programs like Title VII's Primary Care Training and Enhancement.

STFM and the other CAFM organizations have activated our new grassroots advocacy network and been actively involved in advocacy efforts on behalf of these programs. We have been working with the primary care community in DC to reach out to legislators and encourage them to protect Title VII funding, asking for a funding increase to a level of $71 million. This figure encompasses the physician assistant program increase asked for by the president, as well as additional funds necessary to hold a new competitive grant cycle for all programs in FY 2013.

Support Family Medicine's GME Modernization Pilot —Ask Your Representative to Co-sponsor H.R. 3667

January 6—On December 14, Representative McMorris-Rodgers of Washington and Representative Thompson of California introduced the Primary Care Workforce Access Improvement Act of 2011 (H.R. 3667). The bill's introduction is the culmination of family medicine's efforts over the last 3 years to introduce reforms in the way Medicare funds graduate medical education. This bill is a budget-neutral way to test new models for the delivery of GME funding—the funding for the training of primary care physicians, particularly family physicians, will take a different path from traditional hospital GME payments. The pilot project introduced by this bill changes the stream of GME funding to make it directly available to medical education entities whose priority is training the primary care workforce. It provides a valuable opportunity to explore modern training techniques that could be useful for the production of the type of primary care physician needed now and for the future and allows for an increase in the number of primary care physicians.

It is of critical importance that you contact your representative on behalf of your program or department and ask him or her to cosponsor this bill. Visit the Alert to contact your representative now. Visit the GME Modernization Pllot Page to receive talking point, links to FAQs, and background information.

Legislation Introduced to Support Primary Care Training 

Family Medicine Responds to OMB on the Use of Performance Measures to Evaluate Title VII Primary Care Training Programs

November 14, 2011—STFM, as part of the Council of Academic Family Medicine, along with the AAFP, made recommendations regarding the use of performance measures identified by HRSA and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to evaluate Title VII primary care training programs. In response to the OMB request for comment in the October 14, 2011 Federal Register, CAFM and AAFP applauded HRSA and OMB's goals of streamlining the reporting process and updating information collection efforts to allow meaningful, consistent assessments of Title VII successes. We strongly urged HRSA and OMB to move to a centralized, national system for tracking program outcomes in order to both lessen the collection burden and also as a way to show the validity of Title VII.  Read the letter and supporting materials

Primary Care Organizations Unite to Protect Funding for Primary Care Training

November 4, 2011—STFM, along with the other CAFM organizations, united multiple primary care organizations to send a letter to the House Appropriations Committee urging them to reassess and revise the provisions in HR 3070 that would eliminate funding for the primary care cluster of health professions in FY2012. The letter stressed funding for primary care training is an investment in the future restraint of health care spending, as well as in improved health outcomes. The letter provided evidence that by supporting and enhancing the primary care workforce, Americans will have access to quality and cost-effective health care. Read the letter

Family Medicine Speaks Out on the Need for a Strong Primary Care Workforce

October 18, 2011—STFM, as part of the Partnership for Primary Care Workforce (PPCW), participated in a well-attended Congressional briefing on key primary care workforce programs. Representing family medicine, Joseph Gravel, Jr, MD, program director at Lawrence Family Medicine Residency and immediate past president of the Association of Family Medicine Residency Directors, stressed the importance of investing in primary care to reign in health care costs and improve health outcomes for Americans. PPCW is a non-partisan, nationwide effort by key professional, provider, and educational organizations to strengthen and improve the nation’s primary care workforce. Learn More

Letter to CMS Expresses Concern About Changes to the Primary Care Exception Policy

July 26, 2011 –STFM, through CAFM and the AAFP wrote to CMS, expressing concerns that recent changes to the primary care exception rule would create unnecessary extra costs for family medicine residency programs. The rule would require an increase in the number of preceptors if more than one PG1 (under 6 months) was included in the mix of four residents.
See the letter to CMS here

Letter to the "Gang of Six" Asks for Support for Primary Care Through Debt Reduction Process

July 22, 2011–CAFM signed onto a letter written by the American Academy of Family Physicians regarding bi-partisan talks to broker a deal to reduce the deficit and increase the debt ceiling. In the letter, CAFM and AAFP applaud the inclusion of a ten year fix for the Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) and asked for increased payment for primary care services. The letter also cautions against cuts to Medicare Graduate Medical Education (GME), but if cuts should be made, they should be tailored to allow for the advancement of primary care training.
See the letter to the "Gang of Six"

Use August to Educate Your Legislators

July 20, 2011 –Legislators are preparing to return to their home states for the August recess, providing a perfect time for you to set up meetings and site visits to make sure Congress knows why family medicine matters. We have provided you with materials to talk to legislators and their staff about critical federal programs that support family medicine, including Medicare Graduate Medical Education (GME), Title VII, and the National Health Service Corp (NHSC).
See how you can show Congress why family medicine matters

Letter to President Obama and Congressional Leaders Asks for Protection for Primary Care Physician Training

June 27, 2011 – STFM and other CAFM organizations, in collaboration with AAFP, reached out to President Obama and Congressional leaders as they met to address the federal deficit. The letter recommends that any reductions in Medicare GME be tailored in a manner that will allow for the advancement of primary care training, in order to build a workforce that will be able to restrain future health care costs.
Read the letter

"Youcut" Program Targets Comparative Effectiveness Research Funding

June 23, 2011 – Republicans placed AHRQ research funding up for a vote on their web-based "Youcut" program, signaling their intention to cut CER funding in the future. Get more information about Comparative Effectiveness Research and what you can do to protect its funding on our Primary Care Research page.
Read more

Medical Students and Residents Lobby for Title VII Funding

Jun 9, 2011 – Medical schools and residencies from the Washington, DC region joined together for the 2nd annual Health Policy Day on June 9, 2011. Medical students and residents lobbied in support of increased funding for Title VII primary care training and the National Health Service Corps.
Read more

STFM Urges CMS to Exclude Graduate Medical Education Payments From ACO Benchmark

June 6, 2011 – STFM and other CAFM organizations submitted comments in response to the proposed rule, “Medicare Shared Savings Program: Accountable Care Organizations (ACO).” The comments outlined concerns about the impact on graduate medical education if Medicare GME is included as part of the shared savings benchmarks, how primary care is defined, shared savings allocations, and burdensome reporting requirements.
Read the letter to CMS.

CAFM and AAFP Nominate Family Physicians for National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)

June 6, 2011 – In response to a request for nominations, CAFM and AAFP submitted the names and CVs of four family physicians who are experts in the “conduct of research, demonstration projects, and evaluations of health care, in the fields of health care qualify research. or health care improvement.” The nominated were Bruce Nedrow Calonge, MD, MPH (Ned), Perry Dickinson, MD, and Norm Oliver, MD.
Read the letter to AHRQ

CAFM and AAFP Urge the House of Representatives to Oppose Converting THC Funding to Annual Appropriations

May 24, 2011 – CAFM and AAFP wrote to members of the House of Representatives to oppose HR 1216, which would convert mandatory THC funding from the Affordable Care Act into an authorization subject to the annual appropriations process. The letter states how steady THC funding is vital to the success of the program and increased primary care training capacity.
Read the letter

CAFM and AAFP Nominate Family Physicians for Council of Graduate Medical Education (COGME)

April 11, 2011 – CAFM and AAFP submitted the names and CVs for seven family physicians to serve on COGME and the renomination of another. The nominated were Andrew Bazemore, MD, MPH, Jeffrey Borkan, MD, PhD, Gretchen Dickson, MD, MBA, Scott Fields, MD, MHA, Allen "Chip" Hixon, MD, Maryjean Schenk, MD, MPH, MS, and Terrence Steyer, MD, while Jerry Kruse, MD, MPH was renominated.
Read the letter

CAFM and AAFP Nominate Family Physicians for the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry (ACTPCMD)

April 11, 2011 – CAFM and AAFP submitted the names and CVs for six family physicians to serve on ACTPCMD. The nominated were Suzanne Allen, MD, MPH, Robert Beattie, MD, William Elder Jr., PhD, Shou Ling, Leong, MD, Paul Paulman, MD, and Joanne Williams, MD, MPH.
Read the letter

CAFM Joins Coalition for Health Funding Letter Asking for Increased Function 550 funding for FY 2012

March 18, 2011 – CAFM joined more than 470 groups in asking for funding levels over the President's request for discretionary public health program for FY 2012. The letter argues that increased funding for programs including health professions education, medical research, and disease prevention and health promotion are vital to the health of Americans.
Read the letter

CAFM and AAFP Send Letter to President Obama Thanking for FY 2012 Budget, Say More Needed Still Though

March 7, 2011- CAFM and AAFP sent a letter to President Obama thanking him for his efforts to expand the primary care physician workforce through his FY 2012 budget request, but there is still more he can do. The letter expresses the need for a more permanent fix to the SGR, narrow the payment gap between primary care and other physicians, and continue to work to increase the primary care workforce.
Read the letter

Letter to Senators Expresses Concern About the Full-year Continuing Appropriations Act (HR 1)

March 8, 2011 – In letters to individual senators, CAFM and AAFP made the case for providing appropriate support for key primary care workforce programs. The letter explained how the House-passed bill will disrupt the funding needed to promote the transition to a health care system with a solid foundation in primary care, promoting better health outcomes and more affordable care.
Read the letter to senators.

STFM Asks Congress Not to Repeal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act

January 5, 2011 – STFM and other CAFM organizations asked representatives to vote against a full repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The letter highlighted key provisions in the Act that aim to increase the primary care workforce and accessibility to high quality care for all, especially those in rural and underserved areas.
Read the letter.

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