- Star Grassroots Advocates
- From June 17-18, PAEA hosted the Association’s first ever HBCU Hill Day. The event provided training to PA students and faculty in policy and advocacy and gave participants the opportunity to meet with their congressional representatives to request increased funding for three programs that are vital to ensuring high-quality training and a representative PA workforce. Additionally, in the Senate, Hill Day participants generated support for S.4169 – the Primary Care Team Education Centers Act. Special thanks to all the PA students and faculty who participated from Howard University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, Morehouse School of Medicine, and North Carolina A&T State University. If you would like to read more about this event, check out this article on the PAEA website.
- Advancing PAEA’s Advocacy Agenda
- On June 13, Representatives Brittany Pettersen (D-CO) and Marc Molinaro (R-NY) introduced the bipartisan Rural Health Preceptor Tax Fairness Act. The bill, modeled after Colorado’s successful rural preceptor tax incentive, would create a $1,000 non-refundable federal tax credit for preceptors to train health professions students in rural areas. This legislation will not only benefit PA programs by alleviating the financial burden of preceptor recruitment but will also improve access to care for rural communities. By exposing students to rural settings in their clinical year, the likelihood of students practicing in rural areas increases significantly.
- On June 25, PAEA along with over 1,000 other stakeholders sent a letter to House and Senate leadership calling on Congress to fully appropriate the necessary non-defense discretionary (NDD) funds to keep pace with rising costs and demand and avoid poison pill policy riders that undercut the priorities of the American people.
- Health Care News in Washington
- On June 26, the House Appropriations Committee released the draft text of its FY25 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill ahead of the subcommittee mark-up. Despite the many proposed cuts included in the bill, PAEA priority programs were protected, such as Scholarships for Disadvantaged Students, Area Health Education Centers, Primary Care Training and Enhancement grants, and the Rural Maternal and Obstetric Care Training demonstration program.
- On June 27, the House LHHS Subcommittee marked up the FY25 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. The LHHS Subcommittee voted along party lines to move the bill for full committee consideration.
- Opportunities for Action
- To decrease disparities in access to care and ensure there are enough providers to meet patient demand nationwide, reach out to your elected representatives today to advocate for increased funding for all Title VII health workforce development programs for fiscal year 2025.
- If you are committed to improving PA education as well as access to care for vulnerable patients, contact your elected representatives in Congress and tell them to support the Rural Health Preceptor Tax Fairness Act.
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