The federal government invests significantly in medical education through various programs to help ensure that the anticipated supply of new physicians meets the nation's health care needs. Medicare, the federal health care program for elderly and certain disabled people, subsidizes training for medical school graduates in hospitals and other teaching institutions by helping to support the increased costs associated with postgraduate medical training. These subsidy payments provided hospitals and other teaching institutions with an additional $8.76 billion for postgraduate medical training in fiscal year 2008. In addition, Medicaid, a joint federal and state program that finances health care for certain low-income individuals, provides funding for graduate medical education. Seven enclosures are included: (1)Graduate Medical Education: Trends in Training and Student Debt (slide presentation); (2) Trends in Postgraduate Dental Education and Student Debt; (3) Trends in Thoracic Surgery Fellowships; (4) Scope and Methodology; (5) Interviews with Government Officials and Professional Groups; (6) Comments from the Department of Health and Human Services; and (7) GAO Contacts and Staff Acknowledgments. (Contains 27 footnotes, 4 figures and 3 tables.) [This briefing was presented to the Chairman, and the Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and Labor, U.S. House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions, Committee on Education and Labor, U.S. House of Representatives; and additional members of the U.S. House of Representatives.]