From the office of Senator Aric Putnam
Campus will train new doctors and offer residency opportunities in greater Minnesota
ST. CLOUD, Minn. – On Wednesday, Senator Aric Putnam (DFL – St. Cloud) and Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul) toured the CentraCare Regional Campus of the University of Minnesota Medical School in St. Cloud, highlighting the new campus’s role in expanding medical education, strengthening access to healthcare, and investing in our workforce in rural Minnesota.
Senator Putnam secured more than $13 million in state funding to help build the CentraCare Medical Education Center, a partnership between CentraCare and the University of Minnesota that brought Minnesota’s first new medical school campus in more than 50 years to Greater Minnesota. The St. Cloud campus combines the University of Minnesota’s medical education program with CentraCare’s community-based healthcare system and clinical training opportunities. The partnership is designed to prepare physicians for the unique healthcare needs of rural Minnesota while expanding the number of physicians trained in the state.
Senator Putnam also championed legislation directing $1.5 million annually through the Minnesota Office of Higher Education to support CentraCare’s residency programs, helping to train the next generation of doctors in greater Minnesota and encouraging them to build their careers in rural communities.
“This campus is about so much more than training doctors, it’s about building the healthcare workforce that we so critically need in greater Minnesota, today and for generations to come,” said Senator Putnam. “Our investment in the University of Minnesota Medical School in St. Cloud will impact the future of healthcare across central Minnesota. By pairing medical education with residency opportunities, we can give more doctors the opportunity to learn, train, and practice in the communities that need them the most.
The CentraCare campus is specifically focused on preparing physicians to serve rural communities across Minnesota. According to the University of Minnesota, the median age of rural Minnesota physicians is 59, with roughly one-third planning to leave the profession within five years, underscoring the need to expand the state’s healthcare workforce.
“This campus is what it looks like when we make smart investments to expand and strengthen our healthcare workforce in greater Minnesota, and with it we make sure Minnesotans can access quality care closer to home,” said Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy. “This CentraCare campus is a tremendous accomplishment, and shows what we can achieve when legislators, healthcare providers, and our university comes together around a shared goal: ensuring that every Minnesota has access to the care they need no matter where they live.
“This is a long-term investment in the health and vitality of communities across Minnesota,” Senator Putnam said. “The students training here today can become the doctors serving our neighbors, our rural communities and our region tomorrow.”