HPNEC: Correspondence - Letter to House Members of the Republic Main Street Partnership



Home Members Working Group Testimony Correspondence Events Photo Galleries Funding by State	Correspondence Letter to House Members of the Republican Main Street Partnership July 10, 2003 Dear Members: We are writing to express our concern regarding the level of support in the FY 2004 House Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education bill for programs focused on improving the accessibility, quality and racial and ethnic diversity of the health care workforce. As you know, the House Appropriations Committee has proposed $391 million for the Health Professions Training Programs, a 7.1 percent cut below last year. We believe any decreases would hamper the programs' ability to continue to prepare health professionals to care for the neediest populations. These programs are the only federal programs designed to train providers in interdisciplinary settings to meet the needs of special and underserved populations, as well as increase minority representation in the health care workforce. Additionally, these programs provide the necessary support to address the growing shortages of pediatric dentists, pharmacists, medical laboratory personnel, allied health, nursing, and public health professionals throughout the country. We understand that there are many competing priorities in your fiscal year 2004 bill; however, reducing funding for health professions training, as proposed in the FY 2004 House Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education bill, would be a major setback to our collective goal of eliminating health status disparities by 2010. That is why we urge you to restore funding to the Title VII and VIII health professions programs to at least the FY 2003 level of $421 million during final consideration of the FY 2004 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education bill. Thank you for your consideration of this request. We look forward to working with you to ensure the continuation of congressional support for these critical programs. Sincerely, Ambulatory Pediatric Association Administrators of Internal Medicine Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine American Academy of Family Physicians American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry American Academy of Pediatrics American Academy of Physician Assistants American Dental Education Association American Geriatrics Society American Physical Therapy Association American Pediatric Society American Society for Clinical Pathology Association of American Medical Colleges Association of Departments of Family Medicine Association of Family Practice Residency Directors Association of Medical School Pediatric Department Chairs Association of Minority Health Professions Schools Association of Professors of Medicine Association of Program Directors in Internal Medicine Association of Subspecialty Professors Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine Association of University Programs in Health Administration Association of Women's Health, Obstetric and Neonatal Nurses Clerkship Directors in Internal Medicine National AHEC Organization North American Primary Care Research Group Society of General Internal Medicine Society for Pediatric Research Society of Teachers of Family Medicine