The commission charged to address the country's looming physician shortage has not been able to start any work due to partisan conflicts in Congress, according to a Washington Post report.
So far, the 15-member National Health Care Workforce Commission has been unable to convene, converse or hire staff because it can't get the $3 million it needs for its initial year of work. Those funds have been blocked by problems over the federal budget and Republicans' opposition to the healthcare reform law, according to the report.
The panel has only held one conference call during which members were told they can't accept money from foundations or lobby Congress for funds to operate the panel.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act charged the commission to analyze shortages of primary care physicians and propose innovations to help solve that gap. The idea behind the group was to counterbalance intense lobbying of medical groups with a "brain trust" of industry experts, according to the report.
The commission's chairman said the "clock is beginning to tick loudly," as healthcare reform continues to be implemented while research on the physician shortage remains at a standstill.
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So far, the 15-member National Health Care Workforce Commission has been unable to convene, converse or hire staff because it can't get the $3 million it needs for its initial year of work. Those funds have been blocked by problems over the federal budget and Republicans' opposition to the healthcare reform law, according to the report.
The panel has only held one conference call during which members were told they can't accept money from foundations or lobby Congress for funds to operate the panel.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act charged the commission to analyze shortages of primary care physicians and propose innovations to help solve that gap. The idea behind the group was to counterbalance intense lobbying of medical groups with a "brain trust" of industry experts, according to the report.
The commission's chairman said the "clock is beginning to tick loudly," as healthcare reform continues to be implemented while research on the physician shortage remains at a standstill.
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