On January 19, 2022, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra hosted a virtual roundtable to discuss the challenges facing the health care workforce pipeline, which have been further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic — and how we’re working to support health care workers.

Secretary Becerra also underscored the importance of diversifying the health care workforce to better serve all communities in building a more equitable health care system.

Participants, including Minority Serving Institutions, the Cherokee Nation, medical and nursing school associations, and provider associations, are listed below.

• American Association of Medical Colleges (AAMC)
• American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN)
• Cherokee Nation
• UC Davis Health
• Johns Hopkins Medicine
• Morehouse School of Medicine
• Meharry Medical College
• American Medical Association (AMA)
• American Nursing Association (ANA)

Participants highlighted the importance of centering and investing in equity in the medical field; focusing on retention of current doctors, nurses, and other medical staff; and lowering barriers to entry in the medical field through earlier interventions in the workforce pipeline.

Secretary Becerra invited the roundtable to share recommendations on “using this moment, in an extraordinary time, to meet the longstanding need to provide our nation with a workforce reflective of the people it’s serving,” particularly within primary care, behavioral health, and rural health, where the needs are most urgent.

This discussion builds on Secretary Becerra’s longstanding commitment to supporting health care workers and the communities they serve. Secretary Becerra closed the roundtable by thanking participants for their expertise and encouraging them to continue to share their research, successes, and ideas with HHS.