By Journalist Teyte Holcomb (OSU)
OIL House of Representatives have been busy voting on legislation, and doctors are on hot topic.
House bill OSU-516, or the “Making Doctors Work Act,” seeks to extend the time doctors must stay employed to receive back reimbursement for his or her student loans. In a passing vote of 23-21, the house was almost half-divided in their decision on this bill.
Author Sukesh Kamesh (OSU) said that his intentions of this bill were to improve rural communities and access to rural medical care.
“We have a lot of low retention rates with not only physicians but health-care workers in general,” Kamesh (OSU) said.
“I looked at the Oklahoma [statutes] and it’s $200,000 for four years originally, and the reason I’m making it eight is because that doesn’t adjust to the rural healthcare shortage.”
The bill describes rural areas that are any area in the state excluding Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Norman and Stillwater. Citizens that wish to create a practice or start working in an area that is not one of these metros must be approved by the Health Care Workforce Training Commission, who are the ones that will administer the loan payment program.
Although Kamesh is hopeful for the future of his bill, he said he is a little interested to see how it will do in the Senate.
“I’m a zero star so I’ve heard a lot of scary things about the Senate,” Kamesh said.
“Hopefully the Senate understands and I can alleviate all of their questions, but at the end of the day I think I am doing my best to increase rural doctor retention rate.”
The bill states that a max of $25,000 annually can be distributed annually for eight years, and after those eight a total of $200,000 in repayment will have been distributed to the individual.
Representative Elbow (OU) said she thought the bill was a good place to start in regards to increasing incentives, but could have done more to recruit rather than just retain.
“I think it had a really important precedent,” Elbow said.
“However I think it could have done more to incentivize them to come in the first place rather than just to stay.”
House bill OSU-516 has passed in the House of Representatives and will now continue through the Senate. Depending on the Senate vote, OSU-516 will then be signed by the OIL Governor.