The National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) is the non-profit, non-governmental organization that facilitates the annual “match” between medical students and residency programs. Created in 1952, it was implemented to make the process more streamlined, and initially to ease the competition between programs in filling available positions. While it has changed over the years, the NRMP employs a matching algorithm to match qualified students and programs together. Taking part in the match process requires both the program and the student to enter into a Match Participation Agreement with the NRMP that makes the NRMP’s match a binding commitment. Neither the program, nor the student, can unilaterally break the match, though either party can apply for a waiver of the binding commitment if either side can demonstrate serious or extreme hardship as a result of the match.   

The Match Participation Agreement also designates conduct that constitutes a violation of the agreement, and for those violations, the NRMP can impose some very serious penalties. For example, any incident decided to be a violation by the NRMP will result in a Final Report detailing the participant’s transgressions, which is sent to the applicant’s medical school, the American Board of Medical Specialties, the residency program, the Federation of State Medical Boards, and others. Other possible penalties include being barred from participating in future NRMP Matches for up to three years, or being barred from accepting a position with any residency program that participates in the NRMP Match. For medical students, the Match is just about the only game in town, especially for M.D.’s, and a prohibition from participating in the Match, or from accepting positions in Match-associated programs, has the potential to throw a giant wrench into one’s medical career just as it is getting started. 

The best way to avoid such consequences is to avoid violations of the Match Participation Agreement, which include: failure to provide complete, timely and accurate information during the match process; attempts to subvert the match process; failure to accept an appointment; and any other irregular behavior. The issues that we come across most frequently are an applicant’s alleged failure to provide complete, timely, and accurate information relating to disciplinary action that they faced at some point in their medical education.   If a residency program makes a fuss about the completeness of an applicant’s disclosures, the NRMP can use their broadly worded Agreement to initiate an investigation. As we stated above, the consequences can be great, including banning an applicant from the Match for a term of years (or life), or decreeing that the applicant cannot take a position with a program that participates in the Match.   

If you are a physician Match-applicant who has run afoul of the NRMP, please consider hiring an experienced healthcare law attorney to assist you. The consequences of NRMP sanctions can be great, especially at this formative stage in your career. Contact the healthcare law attorneys at the Leichter Law Firm, PC, at (512) 495-9995.