(a) Establishment; duties There is established the Council on Graduate Medical Education (in this section referred to as the Council). The Council shall
(1) make recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this section referred to as the Secretary), and to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate, and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, with respect to
(A) the supply and distribution of physicians in the United States;
(B) current and future shortages or excesses of physicians in medical and surgical specialties and subspecialties;
(C) issues relating to foreign medical
school graduates;
(D) appropriate Federal policies with respect to the matters specified in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), including policies concerning changes in the financing of undergraduate and graduate medical education programs and changes in the types of medical education training in graduate medical education programs;
(E) appropriate efforts to be carried out by hospitals, schools of medicine, schools of osteopathic medicine, and accrediting bodies with respect to the matters specified in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C), including efforts for changes in undergraduate and graduate medical education programs; and
(F) deficiencies in, and needs for improvements in, existing data bases concerning the supply and distribution of, and postgraduate training programs for, physicians in the United States and steps that should be taken to eliminate those deficiencies; and
(2) encourage entities providing graduate medical education to conduct activities to voluntarily achieve the recommendations of the Council under paragraph (1)(E).
(b) Composition The Council shall be composed of
(1) the Assistant Secretary for Health or the designee of the Assistant Secretary;
(2) the Administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration;
(3) the Chief Medical Director of the Department of Veterans Affairs;
(4) 6 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of practicing primary care physicians, national and specialty physician organizations, foreign medical graduates, and medical
student and house staff associations;
(5) 4 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of schools of medicine and osteopathic medicine and public and private teaching hospitals; and
(6) 4 members appointed by the Secretary to include representatives of health insurers, business, and labor.
(c) Terms of appointed members
(1) In general; staggered rotation
Members of the Council appointed under paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) of subsection (b) of this section shall be appointed for a term of 4 years, except that the term of office of the members first appointed shall expire, as designated by the Secretary at the time of appointment, 4 at the end of 1 year, 4 at the end of 2 years, 3 at the end of 3 years, and 3 at the end of 4 years.
(2) Date certain for appointment
The Secretary shall appoint the first members to the Council under paragraphs (4), (5), and (6) of subsection (b) of this section within 60 days after October 13, 1992.
(d) Chair
The Council shall elect one of its members as Chairman of the Council.
(e) Quorum
Nine members of the Council shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold hearings.
(f) Vacancies
Any vacancy in the Council shall not affect its power to function.
(g) Compensation Each member of the Council who is not otherwise employed by the United States Government shall receive compensation at a rate equal to the daily rate prescribed for GS18 under the General Schedule under section
5332 of title
5 for each day, including traveltime,
such member is engaged in the actual performance of duties as a member of the Council. A member of the Council who is an officer or employee of the United States Government shall serve without additional compensation. All members of the Council shall be reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and other necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of their duties.
(h) Certain authorities and duties
(1) Authorities In order to carry out the provisions of this section, the Council is authorized to
(A) collect such information, hold such hearings, and sit and act at such times and places, either as a whole or by subcommittee, and request the attendance and testimony of such witnesses and the production of such books, records, correspondence, memoranda, papers, and documents as the Council or such subcommittee may consider available; and
(B) request the cooperation and assistance of Federal departments, agencies, and instrumentalities, and such departments, agencies, and instrumentalities are authorized to provide such cooperation and assistance.
(2) Coordination of activities The Council shall coordinate its activities with the activities of the Secretary under section
295k of this title. The Secretary shall, in cooperation with the Council and pursuant to the recommendations of the Council, take such steps as are practicable to eliminate deficiencies in the data base established under section
295k of this title and shall make available in its reports such comprehensive data sets as are developed pursuant to this section.
(i) Requirement regarding reports
In the reports required under subsection (a) of this section, the Council shall specify its activities during the period for which the report is made.
(j) Final report
Not later than April 1, 2002, the Council shall submit a final report under subsection (a) of this section.
(k) Termination
The Council shall terminate September 30, 2003.
(l) Funding
Amounts otherwise appropriated under this subchapter may be utilized by the Secretary to support the activities of the Council.