HB 834 -- Health Professional Student Loan Repayment Program

Sponsor:  Barry

This bill renames the Medical School Loan Repayment Program as
the Health Professional Student Loan Repayment Program and
expands its scope to include dentists.  The criteria for areas
of defined need are revised to remove the patient ratios,
poverty and age percentages, and distance requirements to
hospitals and are replaced with designation as shortage areas by
the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or a
determination of extraordinary need by the Director of the
Department of Health.  The maximum amount of repayment
assistance is revised from its current level of $20,000 per year
of obligated service to an amount not exceeding the maximum
allowed under the National Health Service Corps Repayment
Program.  For students who breach their service obligation
contracts, the penalty is changed from $500 per month of service
not completed to include damages incurred by the Department of
Health resulting from the breach and legal fees and costs
incurred in the collection of damages.

Missouri House of Representatives
Last Updated September 13, 2001 at 2:04 pm