Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025
This bill provides Medicare funding for 14,000 new doctor residency training positions, releasing 2,000 spots per year from 2026 through 2032. The funding targets regions facing doctor shortages, reserving positions for rural facilities, hospitals already training more doctors than their federal caps allow, and areas with new medical schools or ties to historically Black medical colleges. In addition, federal officials must study and recommend strategies to increase diversity in the healthcare workforce, particularly among rural, low-income, and minority professionals.
What this bill touches.
Who it helps · who it burdens.
Who it helps
- Teaching hospitalsReceive up to 14,000 additional Medicare-funded residency training positions between fiscal years 2026 and 2032, including Direct Graduate Medical Education (DGME) per-resident funding and Indirect Medical Education (IME) payment adjustments.
- Prospective medical residentsGain access to 14,000 new Medicare-supported residency training positions distributed nationwide, expanding opportunities for graduate medical training.
- Historically Black medical schools and minority-serving institutionsReceive statutory priority for health professional shortage area residency allocations for their affiliated teaching hospitals.
Who it burdens
- Teaching hospitals receiving new residency slotsMust formally commit to increasing total resident counts by the number of positions awarded, and hospitals receiving certain over-cap slots must maintain at least 25 percent of residents in primary care and general surgery for at least five years.
- Government Accountability OfficeRequired to conduct a study and submit a report to Congress within two years evaluating strategies to increase healthcare workforce diversity from rural, lower-income, and underrepresented minority communities.
Who backs it
- Medicare programFinances DGME per-resident payments and IME payment adjustments for up to 2,000 new residency slots annually from FY 2026 through FY 2032 (totaling 14,000 slots).
The provisions, in plain language.
Show all 9 provisions
Directs the Department of Health and Human Services to distribute 2,000 additional Medicare-funded doctor residency training slots each year from fiscal years 2026 through 2032 (totaling 14,000 slots), carrying forward any unused positions until all are distributed.
Reserves one-third of the new residency slots for teaching hospitals currently training at least 10 residents above their Medicare payment caps, requiring them to train at least 25 percent of their residents in primary care and general surgery for at least five years.
Requires at least 10 percent of the remaining residency positions to go to each of four hospital groups: rural hospitals, hospitals operating above their resident caps, hospitals in states with new medical schools or branch campuses, and hospitals serving health professional shortage areas.
Prioritizes shortage-area residency slot awards to teaching hospitals affiliated with historically Black medical schools or other designated minority-serving colleges.
Directs the Government Accountability Office to submit a study to Congress within two years assessing strategies to increase healthcare workforce diversity from rural, lower-income, and underrepresented minority communities.
Requires hospitals awarded general residency slots to formally agree to expand their overall residency training programs by the full number of positions received.
Limits the total number of new residency positions an individual hospital may receive to 75 slots through fiscal year 2032, unless total national applicant demand falls below available slots.
Funds the new slots under standard Medicare direct graduate medical education rates and allows hospitals to share the positions across affiliated hospital networks starting five years after receiving them.
Authorizes Medicare Indirect Medical Education adjustment payments for the newly distributed resident positions for hospital discharges beginning July 1, 2027.
Directs the Department of Health and Human Services to distribute 2,000 additional Medicare-funded doctor residency training slots each year from fiscal years 2026 through 2032 (totaling 14,000 slots), carrying forward any unused positions until all are distributed.
Reserves one-third of the new residency slots for teaching hospitals currently training at least 10 residents above their Medicare payment caps, requiring them to train at least 25 percent of their residents in primary care and general surgery for at least five years.
Requires at least 10 percent of the remaining residency positions to go to each of four hospital groups: rural hospitals, hospitals operating above their resident caps, hospitals in states with new medical schools or branch campuses, and hospitals serving health professional shortage areas.
Prioritizes shortage-area residency slot awards to teaching hospitals affiliated with historically Black medical schools or other designated minority-serving colleges.
Directs the Government Accountability Office to submit a study to Congress within two years assessing strategies to increase healthcare workforce diversity from rural, lower-income, and underrepresented minority communities.
How your members of Congress line up
How it moved.
Show all 3 actions
- Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Introduced in House
- Referred to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
- Introduced in House
Read it for yourself.
Sources & provenance
Cite this page
Civic Herald. “Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025 (H.R. 4731, 119th Congress).” https://civicherald.app/bills/119-hr-4731. Congress.gov record as of Jul 18, 2026.