2023 Oklahoma Statutes › Title 70. Schools › §70-697.5. Powers, duties and responsibilities.

The Health Care Workforce Training Commission, in order to perform its official function in establishing and administering physician training programs, shall have the following specific powers, duties and responsibilities:
1. To review all available data on health care workforce in Oklahoma in order to determine the current and projected distribution of physicians by geographic location and by type of practice, and, to accomplish this review, the Commission shall obtain information from and work in conjunction with the State Department of Health and all other agencies which gather data and evaluate health care workforce needs;
2. To review data and information on accredited physician internship and residency programs currently operated by Oklahoma hospitals and other approved clinical situations, in order to ascertain the number and distribution by physician specialty training and by geographic location of available internship and residency positions and to evaluate the impact of internship and residency placement on the establishment of practices by physicians in that geographic area or similar areas within the state where their services are urgently needed;
3. To serve as an agent to advise hospitals, clinics, and communities on setting up and planning internship and residency programs which emphasize the provision of additional primary care physicians to service the rural areas of Oklahoma with primary care specialties to be defined to include training in the area of internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics, emergency trauma, and family practice;
4. To provide general counsel and advice in the development, operation and evaluation of physician internship and residency programs throughout the State of Oklahoma in cooperation with the efforts of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and the state's physician training institutions such as the Oklahoma University College of Medicine, Oklahoma City and Tulsa campuses, and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery, and subject to accreditation by official and appropriate accrediting agencies;
5. To develop the criteria for determining the physician training cost component or associated clinical and hospital training costs which are or may be nonreimbursable by third party payers in programs proposed by accredited hospitals, clinical situations, or hospital and clinical programs affiliated with and administered by the College of Medicine, College of Medicine - Tulsa or College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery in order to determine the share for the state in supporting the salary, benefits, training and program administration costs incurred by hospitals in supporting of the interns and residents;
6. To develop the criteria and procedure by which state matching funds will be awarded to hospitals, accredited clinical situations, in cooperation with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa, and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery which shall administer programs in hospital and clinical situations in the state to be used to underwrite the salaries, benefits and associated training and administration costs provided for the physician interns and residents during their period of training in such a way as to create an incentive for the development and establishment of residency and internship positions by hospitals, clinical establishments or by affiliation agreement with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery by providing funds to cover and to supplement the nonreimbursable or additional costs incurred in hospitals for training activities or for delivery of service in outreach and ambulatory clinical situations which are outside but associated with the hospitals and clinical establishments participating in the program;
7. To review and to approve for inclusion in the programs funded the applications for funds submitted by accredited hospitals and clinical situations participating in physician training programs in cooperation with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery for the costs of supplying residents and interns in programs which they administer by affiliation agreements with hospitals and clinical situations throughout the state in which the interns and residents are supervised and funded by the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery and the hospitals and clinical establishments pay for the patient care services rendered in their institutions by these residents and interns during the period of training;
8. To determine the specific level of funding and the priorities used for granting state support to approved hospitals and clinical situations, in cooperation with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery for approved hospital physician training programs for interns and residents and to recommend to the Governor and the Oklahoma Legislature the total funds needed to carry out the purpose of this program;
9. To employ a director and any staff personnel required to administer the funding of approved physician training programs and to contract with other state agencies and institutions to conduct and to perform specified services, functions and aspects in administering state funds on the specified cost-sharing basis determined by the Commission or for developing programs and community and institutional participation in these training programs;
10. To ensure that hospitals or clinical situations that can qualify in all sections of Oklahoma be utilized, and to take all steps necessary to assist such hospitals or clinics in obtaining necessary recognition or status, or in meeting standards for accreditation or affiliation so that they may participate in these physician training programs;
11. To ensure that in programs administered and operated by the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, University of Oklahoma College of Medicine - Tulsa and the Oklahoma College of Osteopathic Medicine and Surgery in hospitals and clinical situations throughout the state that funds allocated to the colleges are paid by the hospitals and clinical situations in which the patient care services are rendered, the funds are expended for such purposes in funding residents and interns in the physician training programs that the colleges have established with the approved hospitals and clinical situations which programs are designed to provide primary health care services to the rural and medically underserved parts of the state;
12. To conduct and to administer a program of physician and health care workforce placement services throughout the State of Oklahoma. Placement services shall be made available to communities, hospitals, health care facilities, physician and health professional training institutions, health professional associations and organizations, individual physicians, health professionals, students in physician and health professional training institutions and schools, and other interested parties in such a way so as to further the purposes of improving the distribution of physicians and health professionals practicing or available for practice in the state and improving in the availability of health care services to the people of the state. Said placement service shall include but not be limited to assisting communities in matching with, contacting and recruiting physicians and health professionals to practice in communities in the state. The Commission shall develop criteria and procedures for the conduct and performance of placement services and employ any staff, contract for services with any private agency, nonprofit corporation or institution to facilitate the performance of placement services.
Added by Laws 1975, c. 271, § 5, emerg. eff. June 5, 1975. Amended by Laws 1976, c. 212, § 11, emerg. eff. June 7, 1976; Laws 1989, c. 227, § 38; Laws 2022, c. 407, § 19.
NOTE: In accordance with Article VI, Section 11, of the Oklahoma Constitution, House Bill 2776 became law without the Governor's signature. It was filed with the Oklahoma Secretary of State on May 27, 2022.