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.Copyright (c) Missouri House of Representatives