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1
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The health and health care needs of the residents
3 of the State of Illinois are a primary concern of the State
4 government; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Forecasters anticipate significant physician
6 shortages due to changing health care workforce demographics,
7 looming retirements of physicians, and increased demand for
8 health care services as the population ages; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Addressing physician workforce issues requires
10 data and planning; and
 
11     WHEREAS, Illinois-specific health and
12 physician-supply-and-demand data remain fragmented and
13 incomplete; and
 
14     WHEREAS, The State of Illinois is home to several major
15 academic institutions whose graduates in the field of medicine
16 are unknown and lack an effort devoted to the study of the
17 physician workforce; and
 
18     WHEREAS, The State of Illinois has no central repository of
19 information about medical school and residency graduates and
20 their retention, nor of the incentives/disincentives to remain

 

 

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1 within the State's borders; and
 
2     WHEREAS, The needs of medically underserved rural and urban
3 residents of the State of Illinois are largely unknown and
4 often unmet; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Illinois lacks a coordinated effort to collect and
6 disseminate data and information to help assess current and
7 future physician supply, demand, and distribution issues in the
8 State; and
 
9     WHEREAS, The Illinois General Assembly and State agencies
10 in Illinois lack physician workforce data and information
11 necessary to inform policy-making; and
 
12     WHEREAS, The 2007 Illinois State Health Improvement Plan
13 identifies having an optimal, competent, and diverse physician
14 workforce as a critical strategic health care priority;
15 therefore, be it
 
16     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
17 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE
18 SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that the General Assembly recommends
19 that an Illinois Physician Workforce Institute be organized and
20 operated as an independent, unbiased, and not-for-profit
21 research organization whose purpose is to collect, aggregate,

 

 

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1 analyze, and distribute Illinois-specific physician workforce
2 data to provide objective information for assisting health
3 care, professional, and education organizations, policy
4 makers, and the public on issues related to the supply, demand,
5 distribution, and use of physicians across the State; and be it
6 further
 
7     RESOLVED, That the General Assembly recommends that health
8 and health care stakeholders and educational institutions
9 collaborate to form a public-private partnership to develop an
10 Illinois Physician Workforce Institute that would:
11         (1) Collect, analyze, track, and distribute physician
12     workforce data in Illinois through relationships with
13     existing State and other agencies and through de novo
14     survey processes;
15         (2) Identify existing and new data resources necessary
16     to benchmark and measure Illinois' progress over time,
17     including adding a web-based questionnaire for those
18     renewing their State licensure to collect critical data
19     points on workforce development for physicians and
20     practice environments modeled after existing programs in
21     other states;
22         (3) Consider the impact of changes in health care
23     education and service on the demand for and use of
24     physicians in Illinois;
25         (4) Evaluate proposed and enacted health care policy

 

 

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1     legislation and regulations to determine the impact on
2     Illinois' physician workforce;
3         (5) Conduct studies of the supply, demand, use, and
4     education of the physician workforce;
5         (6) Survey the graduates of medical schools,
6     residencies, and fellowships to determine how effective
7     Illinois is in retaining these graduates;
8         (7) Provide technical assistance to health care and
9     education organizations on issues related to current and
10     projected physician workforce issues;
11         (8) Function as a comprehensive information resource
12     to assist health care, professional, and education
13     organizations, policy makers, and the public in their
14     efforts related to the supply, demand, distribution, and
15     use of physicians in Illinois;
16         (9) Report on the diversity of the physician workforce
17     and present strategies for ensuring a physician workforce
18     that reflects the diversity of Illinois' population;
19         (10) Perform a physician re-registration survey in
20     conjunction with physician license renewal that describes
21     the supply and distribution of the current physician
22     workforce in the State;
23         (11) Perform an annual resident exit survey for the
24     approximately 6,000 residents and fellows who complete
25     training in Illinois programs;
26         (12) Foster partnerships with new and existing health

 

 

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1     workforce research initiatives to understand physician
2     workforce issues in the context of Illinois' overall health
3     and health care workforce needs; and
4         (13) Provide State funding to assist in the costs
5     associated with data collection and analysis for
6     physicians; and be it further
 
7     RESOLVED, That the General Assembly urges the Governor, the
8 Illinois Department of Public Health, the Illinois Department
9 of Financial and Professional Regulation, the Illinois Board of
10 Higher Education, the Illinois Department of Healthcare and
11 Family Services, the Illinois Department of Commerce and
12 Economic Opportunity, and other relevant State agencies to
13 collaborate with stakeholders, including, but not limited to,
14 the Illinois State Medical Society, the Illinois Hospital
15 Association, and the Illinois Public Health Institute, in the
16 development of the Illinois Physician Workforce Institute; and
17 be it further
 
18     RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
19 delivered to the Governor, the Director of Public Health, the
20 Secretary of Financial and Professional Regulation, the
21 Chairperson of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, the
22 Director of Healthcare and Family Services, and the Director of
23 Commerce and Economic Opportunity.