83 FR 22271 - Solicitation of Nominations for Membership To Serve on the Council on Graduate Medical Education

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 93 (May 14, 2018)

HRSA is seeking nominations of qualified candidates for consideration for appointment as members of the Council on Graduate Medical Education (COGME). COGME provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary of HHS; the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions; and the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce on matters concerning the supply and distribution of physicians in the United States, physician workforce trends, training issues, financing policies, and other matters of significance related to physician workforce and graduate medical education.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 93 (Monday, May 14, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 22271-22272]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-10129]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


Solicitation of Nominations for Membership To Serve on the 
Council on Graduate Medical Education

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), Department 
of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Request for nominations.

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SUMMARY: HRSA is seeking nominations of qualified candidates for 
consideration for appointment as members of the Council on Graduate 
Medical Education (COGME). COGME provides advice and recommendations to 
the Secretary of HHS; the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor 
and Pensions; and the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy 
and Commerce on matters concerning the supply and distribution of 
physicians in the United States, physician workforce trends, training 
issues, financing policies, and other matters of significance related 
to physician workforce and graduate medical education.

DATES: The agency will accept nominations on a continuous basis.

ADDRESSES: Nomination packages may be mailed to Advisory Council 
Operations, Bureau of Health Workforce, HRSA, Room 11W45C, 5600 Fishers 
Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857 or submitted electronically by email 
to: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kennita R. Carter, MD, Designated 
Federal Official, COGME at 301-945-3505 or email at [email protected]. A 
copy of the current COGME charter, membership, and reports can be 
obtained by accessing the COGME website https://www.hrsa.gov/advisorycommittees/bhpradvisory/cogme/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: COGME encourages entities providing graduate 
medical education to conduct activities to voluntarily achieve the 
recommendations of COGME; develops, publishes, and implements 
performance measures and longitudinal evaluations; and recommends 
appropriation levels for certain Public Health Service Act (PHSA) Title 
VII programs. Meetings take place twice a year.
    Nominations: HRSA is requesting nominations for voting members of 
COGME to include representatives of practicing primary care physicians, 
national and specialty physician organizations, foreign medical 
graduates, medical student and house staff associations, schools of 
allopathic and osteopathic medicine, public and private teaching 
hospitals, and representatives of health insurers, business, and labor. 
Additionally, HRSA encourages nominations of medical students, 
residents, and/or fellows. Members receive appointments based on their 
competence, interest, and knowledge of the mission of the profession 
involved.
    The Secretary of HHS will consider nominations of all qualified 
individuals within the areas of subject matter expertise noted above. 
In making such appointments, the Secretary shall ensure a broad 
geographic representation of members and a balance between urban and 
rural educational settings.
    Professional organizations, employers, or colleagues may nominate 
one or more qualified persons for membership. Individuals selected for 
appointment to COGME will be invited to serve for 4 years. COGME 
members are appointed as special government employees and receive a 
stipend and reimbursement for per diem and travel expenses incurred for 
attending meetings and/or conducting other business on behalf of COGME, 
as authorized by section 5 U.S.C. 5703 for persons employed 
intermittently in government service.
    To evaluate possible conflicts of interest, individuals selected 
for consideration for appointment will be required to provide detailed 
information regarding their financial holdings, consultancies, and 
research grants or contracts. The selected candidates must fill out the 
U.S. Office of Government Ethics (OGE) Confidential Financial 
Disclosure Report, OGE Form 450. Disclosure of this information is 
necessary to determine if the selected candidate is involved in any 
activity that may pose a potential conflict with their official duties 
as a member of the Committee.
    A nomination package should include the following information for 
each nominee: (1) A letter of nomination from an employer, a colleague, 
or a professional organization stating the name, affiliation, and 
contact information for the nominee, the basis for the nomination 
(i.e., what specific attributes, perspectives, and/or skills does the 
individual possess that would benefit the workings of COGME), and the 
nominee's field(s) of expertise; (2) a letter of interest from the 
nominee stating the reasons they would like to serve on COGME; (3) a 
biographical sketch of the nominee, including a copy of his/her 
curriculum vitae and his/her contact information (address, daytime 
telephone number, and email address); and (4) the name, address, 
daytime telephone number, and email address where the person nominating 
the individual can be contacted.
    HRSA will collect and retain nomination packages to create a pool 
of possible future COGME voting members. When a vacancy occurs, HRSA 
may review nomination packages from the appropriate category and may 
contact nominees at that time.

[[Page 22272]]

Nominations should be updated and resubmitted every 4 years to continue 
to be considered for committee vacancies.
    HHS strives to ensure a balance of the membership of COGME in terms 
of points of view presented and the committee's function and makes 
every effort to ensure the representation of views of women, all ethnic 
and racial groups, and people with disabilities on HHS Federal Advisory 
Committees. Therefore, we encourage nominations of qualified candidates 
from these groups and endeavor to make appointments to COGME without 
discrimination on the basis of age, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual 
orientation, disability, and cultural, religious, or socioeconomic 
status.

    Authority:  Section 762 of the PHSA (42 U.S.C. 294o), as 
amended. COGME is governed by provisions of the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act (FACA), as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2), which sets 
forth standards for the formation and use of advisory committees and 
applies to the extent that the provisions of FACA do not conflict 
with the requirements of PHSA Section 762.

Amy P. McNulty,
Acting Director, Division of the Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2018-10129 Filed 5-11-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4165-15-P