§ 143-613. Medical education; primary care physicians and other providers.
§ 143‑613. Medicaleducation; primary care physicians and other providers.
(a) In recognition of North Carolina's need for primary carephysicians, Bowman Gray School of Medicine and Duke University School ofMedicine shall each prepare a plan with the goal of encouraging North Carolinaresidents to enter the primary care disciplines of general internal medicine,general pediatrics, family medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, and combinedmedicine/pediatrics and to strive to have at least fifty percent (50%) of NorthCarolina residents graduating from each school entering these disciplines.These schools of medicine shall present their plans to the Board of Governorsof The University of North Carolina by April 15, 1996, and shall update andpresent their plans every two years thereafter. The Board of Governors shallreport to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee by May 15, 1996,and every two years thereafter on the status of these efforts to strengthenprimary health care in North Carolina.
(b) The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolinashall set goals for the Schools of Medicine at the University of North Carolinaat Chapel Hill and the School of Medicine at East Carolina University forincreasing the percentage of graduates who enter residencies and careers inprimary care. A minimum goal should be at least sixty percent (60%) ofgraduates entering primary care disciplines. Each school shall submit a planwith strategies to reach these goals of increasing the number of graduates enteringprimary care disciplines to the Board by April 15, 1996, and shall update andpresent the plans every two years thereafter. The Board of Governors shallreport to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee by May 15, 1996,and every two years thereafter on the status of these efforts to strengthenprimary health care in North Carolina.
Primary care shall include the disciplines of family medicine, generalpediatric medicine, general internal medicine, internal medicine/pediatrics,and obstetrics/gynecology.
(b1) The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolinashall set goals for State‑operated health professional schools that offertraining programs for licensure or certification of physician assistants, nursepractitioners, and nurse midwives for increasing the percentage of thegraduates of those programs who enter clinical programs and careers in primarycare. Each State‑operated health professional school shall submit a planwith strategies for increasing the percentage to the Board by April 15, 1996,and shall update and present the plan every two years thereafter. The Board ofGovernors shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committeeby May 15, 1996, and every two years thereafter on the status of these effortsto strengthen primary health care in North Carolina.
(c) The Board of Governors of The University of North Carolinashall further initiate whatever changes are necessary on admissions, advising,curriculum, and other policies for State‑operated medical schools andState‑operated health professional schools to ensure that largerproportions of students seek residencies and clinical training in primary caredisciplines. The Board shall work with the Area Health Education Centers andother entities, adopting whatever policies it considers necessary to ensurethat residency and clinical training programs have sufficient residency andclinical positions for graduates in these primary care specialties. As used inthis subsection, health professional schools are those schools or institutionsthat offer training for licensure or certification of physician assistants,nurse practitioners, and nurse midwives.
(d) The progress of the private and State‑operated medicalschools and State‑operated health professional schools towards increasingthe number and proportion of graduates entering primary care shall be monitoredannually by the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina.Monitoring data shall include (i) the entry of State‑supported graduatesinto primary care residencies and clinical training programs, and (ii) thespecialty practices by a physician and each midlevel provider who were State‑supportedgraduates as of a date five years after graduation. The Board of Governorsshall certify data on graduates, their residencies and clinical trainingprograms, and subsequent careers by October 1 of each calendar year, beginningin October of 1995, to the Fiscal Research Division of the Legislative ServicesOffice and to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee.
(e) The information provided in subsection (d) of this sectionshall be made available to the Appropriations Committees of the GeneralAssembly for their use in future funding decisions on medical and healthprofessional education. (1993, c. 321, ss. 78(a1)‑(e); c. 529, s. 1.3; c. 561, s. 10;1995, c. 507, s. 23A.5.)