HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced that the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) will recruit 40 new U.S. Public Health Service officers to serve in some of the most medically underserved communities in America and to provide an additional resource of health professionals able to respond to medical emergencies nationwide.

These officers will be primary care clinicians recruited from the general public. Their first assignments will be determined prior to being commissioned and will be no longer than three years in duration.

In addition to providing needed primary health care services, the 40 officers will be trained as “NHSC Ready Responders” who may be called upon to respond to regional or national medical emergencies.  The NHSC will assure that the officers get appropriate training to respond immediately and effectively if needed in the event of a large-scale medical emergency

“The National Health Service Corps is one of the best tools we have to extend quality health care to low-income and underserved Americans in urban, rural and frontier areas,” Secretary Thompson said. 

“We’re reducing administrative positions in the NHSC program so we can get as many clinicians as possible to the front lines to provide direct medical care for those who need it most,” said Elizabeth M. Duke, Ph.D., administrator of HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). 

The NHSC Ready Responders will complement other officers within HHS who have demonstrated their ability to respond to national emergencies.  They will be distinct from the Disaster Medical Assistance Teams (DMAT), which train and are deployed together in the field during emergencies.

Since many NHSC clinicians serve in HRSA-supported health centers, some of these officers will be assigned to health center sites.  Today’s announcement is part of President Bush’s five-year initiative to expand the NHSC and the health center network.  Health centers currently serve more than 10 million patients annually; the President wants to boost that figure to 16 million by 2006.

NHSC clinicians serve in Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) where many health centers are located.  HPSAs have a severe shortage of health care providers, such as doctors, dentists, or mental health workers, to meet the health care needs of the residents.