Graduate Medical Education

Jung v. Ass'n of Am. Med. Colleges, No. CIV. A.02-0873 PLF.(D.D.C., Feb. 11, 2004)

A group of medical school graduates sued the organizations that administer graduate medical education (such as the Association of American Medical Colleges, National Resident Matching Program, American Board of Medical Specialties, and Council of Medical Specialty Societies, etc.) and many institutions that sponsor medical residency programs (including hospitals, health systems, medical schools, foundations, etc.), alleging that those organizations and institutions violated federal antitrust laws.

The graduates claimed that the National Resident Matching Program eliminates a free and competitive market for physicians seeking resident positions. In support of that claim, they argued that residents are forced into the "Match" because the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education makes graduation from an accredited residency program a prerequisite for specialty certification. The graduates further alleged that the organizations and institutions collect and distribute information regarding resident compensation, allowing them to fix resident salaries and benefits at anticompetitive levels. In sum, the graduates alleged that the system for assigning residents to residency programs constitutes a conspiracy to unreasonably restrain trade, which prevents resident physicians from achieving enhanced salaries and/or better working conditions.

The United States District Court for the District of Columbia made several findings regarding jurisdiction. More importantly, however, the court held that the graduates had adequately alleged that some of the organizations and institutions engaged in a common agreement to displace competition in the recruitment, hiring, employment, and compensation of residents. Accordingly, the court refused to dismiss the graduates' claims.