By Sen. Jacky Rosen

By the year 2030, the United States is expected to face a mass shortage of physicians, according to the Association of American Medical Colleges. It's an issue that rarely gets discussed, but the absence of medical professionals — ranging from physicians to nurses and technicians — is bringing our country closer to an impending health-care crisis. With several key health-care programs also set to expire, including community health center funding, experts are warning that our country is on the brink of what's being called the health-care cliff.

In Nevada, we're already experiencing a doctor shortage. It's one of the reasons our state ranks last when it comes to access to health care; others include difficulty scheduling appointments with primary care physicians, not having enough time in a doctor's office and challenges finding a specialist. The Nevada Independent found that all 17 counties in our state are designated as "health shortage areas" because of the low doctor to patient ratio. Rural areas in Nevada are hit especially hard. Hundreds of thousands of Nevada's rural residents sometimes have to drive hundreds of miles to seek medical care. Experts have pointed to our growing population as one of the leading contributors to the physician shortage.

Just this week, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing to highlight the primary health-care cliff. During the hearing, I had the chance to question experts on ways my fellow senators and I can work to address our nation's doctor shortage and protect access to care for Nevadans. It's clear that we must take immediate action to address this issue. While we can't improve our nation's health-care system overnight, we can start by bringing together both Democrats and Republicans to come up with smart, practical solutions that would increase medical residency positions.

Last Congress, I co-sponsored bipartisan legislation, the Resident Physician Shortage Act, that would increase the number of Medicare-supported graduate medical education (GME) residency slots at U.S. hospitals by 15,000, with a preference for states like Nevada that have new medical schools. This legislation would increase the number of Medicare-supported hospital residency slots by 3,000 each year. The bill would also require hospitals to add additional slots that guarantee that at least 50 percent are used for residency programs experiencing shortages. Rural Nevadans will benefit from these new residency slots; data from the Association of American Medical Colleges has found that medical students who complete medical school and rural residency training in Nevada are 77 percent more likely to remain and practice in the area.

Addressing Nevada's physician shortage will also require forward-thinking solutions such as investing in STEM education so that we can assemble a strong, capable workforce of medical professionals. Improving STEM education in the classroom is something supported on both sides of the aisle. I passed a bipartisan STEM education bill out of the House last Congress and will continue working on bipartisan solutions in the Senate to help more students pursue medical careers.

There are a number of ways we can work together to improve our health-care system, but we can't make progress without first reversing some of the damage this Administration has done to our nation's health-care system. Since taking office, the President has led a relentless effort to undermine the ACA by refusing to defend the constitutionality of the law's pre-existing conditions clause. Moreover, by refusing to fund cost-sharing reduction payments, the President has created massive uncertainty in the health-care marketplace. Sabotaging our health-care system has only increased the shortage of medical professionals, and it's making access to care all the more difficult for Nevadans.

That's why one of the first actions I took in the Senate was to help introduce a resolution to defend the constitutionality of the ACA. I promised that I would continue fighting for Nevadans' health care in every corner of the state, and as your senator, that's what I intend to do. I'm ready to continue to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and develop bipartisan solutions to ensure all Nevadans have access to quality, affordable health care.

Sen. Jacky Rosen is Nevada's junior senator and a member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP).