- Star Grassroots Advocates
- In May, a panel of experts in PA education and practice traveled to Capitol Hill to conduct a briefing for congressional staff entitled, “Increasing Access to Care in Rural and Underserved Communities: Barriers in PA Education” focusing on the clinical site shortage. Thank you for your leadership!
- Advancing PAEA’s Advocacy Agenda
- Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09) and Rep. Michael Burgess (R-TX-26) introduced H.R. 2781 - the EMPOWER for Health Act - in May. This bill would reauthorize and provide 5-7% increases for most Title VII health workforce development programs. In response to the introduction of this bill, PAEA submitted comments to the offices of both lead sponsors praising the bill’s increased authorization levels for high-priority programs while also requesting the inclusion of PAs as eligible participants in the Pediatric Loan Repayment program and increased investments in clinical training opportunites in future iterations.
- PAEA submitted written testimony to the Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies appropriations subcommittee in May outlining the association’s FY 2020 funding priorities. In addition to increased investments in Primary Care Training and Enhancement grants, Area Health Education Centers, and Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students, PAEA called for new investments in opioid-related workforce development and loan repayment initiatives.
- Health Care News in Washington
- In May, the House Energy and Commerce Health subcommittee continued its series of legislative hearings on drug pricing - holding two hearings on the pharmaceutical supply chain and pricing transparency.
- The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee released a discussion draft of bipartisan proposals to address cost drivers in health care. In response to a call for stakeholder input, PAEA will be submitting comments to the committee on the proposed draft in early June.
- Opportunities for Action
- To help build support for H.R. 1685 and H.R. 1686, it is critical that congressional offices hear from their constituents on the impact of these bills in their districts. Please urge your representatives to cosponsor H.R. 1685 and H.R. 1686!
42