Congress urged to reauthorize, double National Health Service Corps funding

AHA July 12 joined 64 other organizations in urging Congress to quickly pass the Restoring America’s Health Care Workforce and Readiness Act, bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize the mandatory portion of the National Health Service Corps through fiscal year 2026 and double funding for its scholarships and loan repayment for health care workers who serve in federally designated shortage areas. Introduced in March by Sens. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the bill would provide $625 million in funding in FY 2024, increasing to $825 million in FY 2026. Without congressional action, the program will expire Sept. 30.

“The urgent need to extend and bolster funding for the NHSC cannot be overstated as the nation continues to reel from severe clinician and healthcare workforce shortages, particularly in rural and underserved communities that can least afford further strain,” the groups said in a letter to leaders of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.