Chancellor William "Bill" Nelson of LSU Health New Orleans and medical staff described the health center’s statewide educational and clinical role, research investments and programs intended to increase local physician supply.

Nelson noted LSU Health’s six schools, regional instructional campuses in Baton Rouge and Lafayette, and a rural medical track that waives tuition for students who commit to return to rural Louisiana after residency. "If you do that, we'll give you four years of free tuition," he said of the rural track. The chancellor said the program has placed more than 80 physicians in underserved Louisiana communities.

Nut graf: LSU Health officials argued that expanding clinical training capacity, retaining graduates and building research infrastructure (including a campus research expansion and a push for NCI cancer‑center status) are critical to keeping clinicians in state and providing specialized care locally.

Chancellor Nelson and burn‑center medical director Dr. Jonathan Shane highlighted clinical and research work: the burn center described surgical innovations (enzymatic debridement, autologous skin‑cell suspension and use of skin substitutes) and Department of Defense and BARDA‑supported projects aimed at expanding burn‑care capacity and remote/AI triage tools. Jonathan Shane described community and statewide education—stop‑the‑bleed, car‑seat and rural trauma team development courses—and noted the economic and public‑health toll of trauma and burn injuries.

Nelson described investments in renovated research space (roughly 200,000 square feet nearing completion) to expand LSU Health’s research enterprise, recruit funded investigators and support ambitions such as NCI designation. He said keeping tuition low makes students more likely to choose primary care and practice in state.

Ending: LSU officials asked lawmakers to sustain and expand support for clinical training sites, research infrastructure and programs that increase the state’s supply of rural and specialty clinicians.