Jan. 08, 2026
HARRISBURG — Rep. Kathy L. Rapp (R-Warren/Crawford/Forest), Republican chair of the House Health Committee,
penned a letter to Dr. Mehmet Oz asking him to expedite the release of federal funding in the wake of another rural hospital ending inpatient labor and delivery services.
On Monday, Jan. 5, Warren General Hospital (WGH) announced the hospital will soon cease inpatient labor and delivery services due to an Obstetrician/Gynecologist (OB/GYN) shortage. Expectant mothers will be referred to one of three hospitals that are 20, 62 and 67 miles away, respectively, from WGH. This adds to a rapidly expanding maternity care desert in northwestern and northcentral Pennsylvania.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, in which Dr. Oz serves as administrator, recently awarded Pennsylvania nearly $200 million as part of the Rural Health Transformation Program. Rapp and fellow legislators called for that funding to be released as soon as possible.
“The influx of this federal funding is urgently needed to address the situation described above as we continue to work with our fellow legislators to effectuate accompanying policies at the state level,” Rapp said. “We recognize that direct funding to the states alone is not going to solve the nationwide shortage of health-care professionals. Federal programs, such as the Conrad 30 program, are often used by international medical graduates to pursue medical residency or fellowship training in the United States need to be re-examined.
“The Conrad 30 program allows international medical graduates, who hold a J-l visa, to apply for a waiver of the two-year residence requirement in their last year of training. In return, the physician must practice a total of three years in an approved Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) or Medically Underserved Area (MUA) in Pennsylvania. Currently, each state is allowed to sponsor up to 30 physicians each year. For a state the size of Pennsylvania, and given the need for more physicians, 30 physicians do not go far enough to address some of the shortages facing the Commonwealth. Further, legislative action to increase the number of residency slots across the country needs to occur.”
Representative Kathy Rapp
65th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Jake Gillespie
717.772.9834
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