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HB 1306

Public Health - Sickle Cell Disease - Specialized Clinics and Scholarship Program for Medical Residents

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jackie Addison and 25 co-sponsors

Maryland bill establishes specialized sickle cell clinics and medical resident scholarships to improve care access and train specialists for this underserved patient population.

Hearing 3/10 at 11:30 a.m.
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Bill Summary · HB 1306

Legislative bill overview

HB 1306 establishes specialized sickle cell disease clinics in Maryland and creates a scholarship program to incentivize medical residents to specialize in treating sickle cell disease. The bill aims to address healthcare disparities and improve access to specialized care for patients with this serious genetic blood disorder that disproportionately affects African Americans.

Why is this important

Sickle cell disease requires specialized, ongoing medical management to prevent complications and improve quality of life, yet many patients lack access to specialized clinics. By creating dedicated clinics and training more specialists through scholarships, Maryland can reduce emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and health disparities while building workforce capacity in an underserved medical field.

Potential points of contention

  • Funding source and costs: Determining how the state will fund clinic operations and scholarships, and whether the fiscal impact is justified given other budget priorities
  • Geographic accessibility: Questions about whether clinics will be distributed equitably across the state or concentrated in urban areas, affecting rural patient access
  • Scholarship program design: Debates over scholarship amounts, repayment obligations, service commitments required, and whether incentives are sufficient to attract medical residents to this specialty

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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