I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2929 
To enhance the primary care workforce through the establishment of a Na-
tional Health Workforce Advisory Board and the provision of workforce 
data and analysis. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 17, 2009 
Mr. SARBANES (for himself and Mr. BRALEY of Iowa) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To enhance the primary care workforce through the estab-
lishment of a National Health Workforce Advisory Board 
and the provision of workforce data and analysis. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Health Care Workforce 
Incentive Act of 2009’’. 
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TITLE I—NATIONAL HEALTH 
WORKFORCE ADVISORY BOARD 
SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT. 
There is established an independent National Health 
Workforce Advisory Board (in this title referred to as the 
‘‘Advisory Board’’) to advise Congress on issues affecting 
the health care workforce, consistent with this title. 
SEC. 102. PURPOSE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The purpose of the Advisory 
Board is to improve the supply, distribution, diversity, and 
quality of health professionals in the health care workforce 
by— 
(1) examining the impact of policies on work-
force and workforce shortages from a multijuris-
dictional perspective, including the Department of 
Labor, Department of Health and Human Services, 
the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the De-
partment of Defense; 
(2) developing innovative solutions to increase 
the short-term supply of the health care workforce, 
including a plan to rapidly deploy health care profes-
sionals in the field; 
(3) coming up with a national plan for increas-
ing the long-term supply and structure of the health 
care workforce; 
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(4) making health care professionals more ac-
cessible to the general population, especially low-in-
come, underserved, uninsured, minority, those expe-
riencing health disparities, and rural populations; 
(5) improving the training of primary care phy-
sicians, nurses, dentists, physician assistants, behav-
ioral and mental health professionals, public health 
professionals, and other health professionals; 
(6) training faculty educators in the health pro-
fessions; and 
(7) utilizing data from a variety of sources, in-
cluding the Health Resources and Services Adminis-
tration, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Serv-
ices, and State Councils that report to the National 
Workforce Data Center of the Health Resources and 
Services Administration. 
(b) DUTIES.— 
(1) REVIEW
OF
HEALTH
CARE
WORKFORCE 
AND
ANNUAL
REPORTS.—With the goal of devel-
oping a fiscally sustainable integrated workforce 
which supports high-quality health care delivery sys-
tem that meets the needs of patients and popu-
lations, the Advisory Board shall— 
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(A) review health care workforce and pro-
jected workforce needs, including the topics de-
scribed in paragraph (2); 
(B) make recommendations to Congress 
concerning national workforce priorities, goals, 
and policies; 
(C) examine and develop innovative short- 
term and long-term solutions for rapid training 
and deployment of personnel into the health 
care workforce; 
(D) not later than 6 months after its cre-
ation, the Board shall develop short-term solu-
tions for rapid training and deployment of per-
sonnel into the workforce, submit to Congress a 
report on such solutions; 
(E) by not later than January 31 of each 
year (beginning with 2011), submit a report to 
Congress containing the results of such reviews 
and its recommendations concerning related 
policies; and 
(F) by not later than April 1 of each year 
(beginning with 2011), submit a report to Con-
gress containing a review of and recommenda-
tions on at minimum one high priority area as 
described in paragraph (3). 
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(2) SPECIFIC TOPICS TO BE REVIEWED.— 
(A) Current health care workforce demo-
graphics, skill sets, and needs, with projected 
needs over the following 10- and 25-year peri-
ods. 
(B) Health care workforce training capac-
ity, including number of students trained, num-
ber of qualified faculty, training infrastructure 
and training needs, with projected needs over 
the following 10- and 25-year periods. 
(C) The implications of new and existing 
Federal policies which affect the workforce, in-
cluding but not limited to Medicare and Med-
icaid GME policies, title VII and title VIII of 
the Public Health Service Act, and the National 
Health Service Corps with recommendations for 
aligning these programs with national health 
workforce priorities and goals. 
(D) Health care workforce needs of special 
populations, such as minorities, rural popu-
lations, underserved populations, and geriatric 
and pediatric populations with recommenda-
tions for new and existing Federal policies to 
meet the needs of these special populations. 
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