Okla. Admin. Code § 540:15-1-3

Current through Vol. 42, No. 4, November 1, 2024

Section 540:15-1-3 - Terms and conditions of assistance

(a) Sections 625.14 and 697.2 of Title 70 of the Oklahoma Statutes authorize the Health Care Workforce Training Commission ("HWTC") to reimburse certain costs associated with internship and residency training programs (hereinafter, "Resident Expenses"), including salary, fringe benefits, training, and administrative costs, in order to help increase the number of Oklahoma residency programs, especially those established and accredited in rural hospitals.

(b) In order to be approved for HWTC reimbursement, a residency program:

(1) Must be affiliated with the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine ("OU"), OU Medicine at Tulsa ("OU Tulsa"), or the Oklahoma State University College of Osteopathic Medicine ("OSU"), which, for the purpose of this Section, shall mean that the residency program is:

(A) Funded and/or operated by OU, OU Tulsa, OSU, or the medical school's respective Hospital Trust Authority; or

(B) Formally recognized by OU, OU Tulsa, or OSU. Provided, however, a residency program located in the Oklahoma City or Tulsa metropolitan statistical area will not be deemed to be formally recognized unless it is owned by OU, OU Tulsa, OSU, or the medical school's respective Trust Authority;

(2) Must be accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Examination ("ACGME");

(3) Cannot submit a request for reimbursement of any expense that has been or is to be paid by another third-party funding source, including, but not limited to, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services ("CMS"), Health Resources & Services Administration ("HRSA"), or Indian Health Service ("IHS");

(4) Must require at least forty percent (40%) of all residents and interns to participate in a rural residency program outside the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metropolitan areas, with the residents allotting their time in accordance with primary care specialty accreditation standards;

(5) Must spend at least seventy-five percent (75%) of the HWTC reimbursements on expenses related to the training of primary health care and family/general practice physicians in areas of the State that are both rural and medically underserved; and

(6) Must comply with all other applicable program requirements as established by HWTC or Oklahoma law.

(c) An approved residency program seeking reimbursement of Resident Expenses shall submit information sufficient to establish the program budget for the upcoming State Fiscal Year (July 1 through June 30), including, but not limited to, the estimated amount of Resident Expenses and all sources and amounts of anticipated third-party funding. This information shall be submitted in the format as required by agency staff no later than April 1 of each year. HWTC will apply the following order of priority, in terms of reimbursing Resident Expenses:

(1) HWTC will divide the appropriations it has received from the Legislature for the purpose of reimbursing Resident Expenses, by the total amount of unfunded Resident Expenses, so that all approved programs receive the same percentage of reimbursement.

(2) In the event the Legislature reduces the agency's appropriations for the purpose of reimbursing Resident Expenses, each approved residency program will receive the same percentage reduction in reimbursement.

(3) In the event that the agency's appropriations for the purpose of reimbursing Resident Expenses exceed the cost of fully reimbursing all unfunded salary expenses for all approved residency programs, the remaining appropriations will be distributed equally based on the total number of residents associated with an approved residency program i.e., on a per-resident basis).

(4) The Commission may direct the agency through formal action, to use carryover funds that had been designated for HWTC program placement and administrative costs to further reimburse Resident Expenses on a per-resident basis, provided that:

(A) HWTC program placement and administrative needs have been fully funded for the upcoming State Fiscal Year;

(B) The following incoming residents will receive an additional weight of 0.5 for the associated approved residency program:

(i) Incoming residents who will be attending OU, OU Tulsa, or OSU for medical school; and

(ii) Incoming residents who lived in Oklahoma for four (4) or more years in the past decade and who are returning to an Oklahoma residence from out of state; and

(C) Residents who establish an Oklahoma medical practice after graduation will receive an additional weight of 2.0 for the associated approved residency program.

(d) Reimbursement of Resident Expenses shall be made by HWTC only to the entity that paid for the Resident Expenses. Supporting documentation must be provided to HWTC upon request.

Okla. Admin. Code § 540:15-1-3

Amended at 15 Ok Reg 1772, eff 5-11-98

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 39, Issue 24, September 1, 2022, eff. 9/11/2022

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 40, Issue 24, September 1, 2023, eff. 9/11/2023

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 41, Issue 22, August 1, 2024, eff. 8/11/2024