I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7855 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize rural residency planning 

and development grant programs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 2, 2024 

Ms. CARAVEO (for herself and Mrs. MILLER of West Virginia) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize rural 

residency planning and development grant programs, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rural Residency Plan5 ning and Development Act of 2024’’. 

6 SEC. 2. RURAL RESIDENCY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 

7 PROGRAMS. 

8 Title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

9 241 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 330A– 

10 2 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 330A–3. RURAL RESIDENCY PLANNING AND DEVELOP2 MENT PROGRAM AND RURAL RESIDENCY 

3 PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT TECHNICAL 

4 ASSISTANCE PROGRAM. 

5 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION OF RURAL RESIDENCY PRO6 GRAM.—In this section, the term ‘rural residency pro7 gram’ means a physician residency program, including a 

8 rural track program, accredited by the Accreditation 

9 Council for Graduate Medical Education (or a similar 

10 body) that— 

11 ‘‘(1) trains residents in rural areas (as defined 

12 by the Secretary) for more than 50 percent of the 

13 total time of their residency; and 

14 ‘‘(2) primarily focuses on producing physicians 

15 who will practice in rural areas, as defined by the 

16 Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(b) RURAL RESIDENCY PLANNING AND DEVELOP18 MENT PROGRAM.— 

19 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In 

20 this subsection, the term ‘eligible entity’— 

21 ‘‘(A) means— 

22 ‘‘(i) a domestic public or private non23 profit or for-profit entity; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) an Indian Tribe or Tribal organi25 zation; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) may include faith-based or commu2 nity-based organizations, rural hospitals, rural 

3 community-based ambulatory patient care cen4 ters (including rural health clinics), health cen5 ters operated by an Indian Tribe, Tribal organi6 zation, or urban Indian organization, graduate 

7 medical education consortiums (including insti8 tutions of higher education, such as schools of 

9 allopathic medicine, schools of osteopathic medi10 cine, or historically Black colleges or univer11 sities), or other organizations as determined ap12 propriate by the Secretary. 

13 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

15 award grants to eligible entities to create new 

16 rural residency programs (including adding new 

17 rural training sites to existing rural track pro18 grams). 

19 ‘‘(B) FUNDING.—Grants awarded under 

20 this subsection may be fully funded at the time 

21 of the award. 

22 ‘‘(C) TERM.—The term of a grant under 

23 this subsection shall be 3 years and may be ex24 tended at the discretion of the Secretary. 

25 ‘‘(3) APPLICATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to re2 ceive a grant under this subsection, an eligible 

3 entity shall prepare and submit to the Secretary 

4 an application at such time, in such manner, 

5 and containing such information as the Sec6 retary may require, including a description of 

7 the pathway of the rural residency program as 

8 described in subparagraph (B). 

9 ‘‘(B) PATHWAY.—A pathway of a rural 

10 residency program supported under this sub11 section shall be for— 

12 ‘‘(i) general primary care and high13 need specialty care, including family medi14 cine, internal medicine, preventive medi15 cine, psychiatry, or general surgery; 

16 ‘‘(ii) maternal health and obstetrics, 

17 which may be obstetrics and gynecology or 

18 family medicine with enhanced obstetrical 

19 training; or 

20 ‘‘(iii) any other pathway as deter21 mined appropriate by the Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(c) RURAL RESIDENCY PLANNING AND DEVELOP23 MENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.— 

24 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—In 

25 this subsection, the term ‘eligible entity’ means— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a domestic public or private nonprofit 

2 or for-profit entity; or 

3 ‘‘(B) an Indian Tribe or Tribal organiza4 tion. 

5 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may 

7 award grants to eligible entities to provide tech8 nical assistance to awardees of and potential 

9 applicants of the program described in sub10 section (b). 

11 ‘‘(B) FUNDING.—Grants awarded under 

12 this subsection may be fully funded at the time 

13 of the award. 

14 ‘‘(C) TERM.—The term of a grant under 

15 this subsection shall be 4 years and may be ex16 tended at the discretion of the Secretary. 

17 ‘‘(3) APPLICATIONS.—To be eligible to receive a 

18 grant under this subsection, an eligible entity shall 

19 prepare and submit to the Secretary an application 

20 at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

21 information as the Secretary may require. 

22 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be 

24 appropriated to carry out this section $12,700,000 

25 for each of fiscal years 2025 through 2029. 


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1 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Any amounts appro2 priated under paragraph (1) shall remain available 

3 to the Secretary until expended.’’. 

Æ 


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