HBA-DMH H.B. 2421 77(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill Analysis
H.B. 2421
 By: Hawley
Public Health
4/23/2001
Committee Report (Amended)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

In rural areas, health care practitioner recruitment and retention rates
are significantly lower than those in urban and suburban areas, creating a
shortage of physicians.  Other states have successfully implemented
programs to recruit students from rural areas to practice the health care
profession in rural areas.  House Bill 2421 establishes a rural physician
recruitment program under the Center for Rural Health Initiatives to
increase the number of physicians practicing in medically underserved rural
areas. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

House Bill 2421 amends the Health and Safety Code to require the Center for
Rural Health Initiatives (center) to develop a program to recruit medical
school students from rural communities and encourage them to return to
rural communities to practice medicine.  The bill requires the center  to: 

_encourage high school and college students from rural communities to
pursue a career in medicine; 

_develop a screening process to identify rural students most likely to
pursue a career in medicine; 

_establish a rural medicine curriculum, a mentoring program for rural
students, and a rural practice incentive program; and 

_provide rural students with information about financial aid resources
available for postsecondary education. 

The bill authorizes the center to accept gifts, grants, and donations to
support the rural physician recruitment program. 

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2001. 

EXPLANATION OF AMENDMENTS

Committee Amendment No. 1 requires the Center for Rural Health Initiatives
(center) to develop a program to recruit students interested in studying
medicine, rather than medical school students, from rural communities and
encourage them to enroll in medical school and to return to rural
communities to practice  medicine.  The amendment also requires the center
to promote and sponsor rural electives in medical school curriculum, rather
than requiring the center to establish a rural medicine curriculum.