Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2026

This bill would amend the Public Health Service Act to let the federal health secretary award grants to set up new rural physician residency programs, including adding new rural training sites to existing rural track programs. These residency grants would last 3 years and could cover primary care, high-need specialties such as psychiatry or general surgery, maternal health and obstetrics, or other areas the Secretary approves. A separate set of 4-year grants would pay for technical assistance to grant recipients and potential applicants. Public, private nonprofit, for-profit, and Tribal entities could apply. The bill authorizes $12,700,000 per year for fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Tina Smith Democrat sponsor
• 1 cosponsors