New Haven, CT – Congresswoman Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT) announced that as a result of $200 million included in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the National Health Services Corps is able to accept additional applications for its scholarship and loan repayment program, which provides loan repayments of up to $50,000 for clinicians who work in health centers, rural health clinics, and other health care facilities that care for the uninsured and underserved people. For more information on applying, people are encouraged to visit: http://nhsc.hrsa.gov/loanrepayment/ or visit: http://nhscjobs.hrsa.gov/ to locate vacancies.

“National Health Services Corps scholarships and loan repayments are wonderful programs that not only create jobs, but help meet the health needs of the uninsured and underserved people. By helping to relieve some of the staggering debt burden, we are opening a career path that for many health professionals may otherwise be financially unviable. I would urge eligible health professionals to consider applying,” said Congresswoman DeLauro.

This funding is expected to support 3,800 primary care doctors, dentists and other clinicians, including nearly 100 in Connecticut, working in underserved communities nationwide – in small towns in the frontier west and in the most distressed inner-city neighborhoods – which will help care for approximately 4 million people, many of whom have no health insurance and rely on these clinicians to keep them healthy and treat their medical, dental and mental health needs. Notably, this Recovery funding will more than double the National Health Service field strength to 8,108 clinicians and benefit almost 9 million people nationwide by 2011.

Scholarship

The NHSC scholarship is a competitive program that pays tuition, fees and provides a living stipend to students enrolled in accredited medical (MD or DO), dental, nurse practitioner, certified nurse midwife and physician assistant training. Upon graduation, scholarship recipients work as primary health care clinicians between two and four years in a community-based site in a high-need Health Professional Shortage Area that has applied to and been approved by the NHSC as a service site. Scholars in service earn a competitive salary paid by the employing site.

Recovery Act funding will enable the NHSC to make 114 new scholarship awards between 2009 and 2011. Applications for the 2009-2010 school year have closed; applications for the 2010-2011 school year will be accepted in the spring of 2010.

Loan Repayment

The NHSC Loan Repayment Program offers fully trained primary care physicians (MD or DO), primary care nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives, primary care physician assistants, dentists, dental hygienists and certain primary care behavioral and mental health clinicians up to $50,000 to repay student loans in exchange for two years serving in a community-based site in a high-need Health Professional Shortage Area that has applied to and been approved by the NHSC as a service site. Clinicians participating in the NHSC Loan Repayment Program earn a competitive salary paid by the employing site.

Recovery Act funding will enable the NHSC to make 3,300 new loan repayment awards between 2009 and 2011.