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ERIC Number: ED614226
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Mar-16
Pages: 26
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Student Loan Programs Authorized by the Public Health Service Act: An Overview. CRS Report R46720, Version 1
Heisler, Elayne J.; Hegji, Alexandra
Congressional Research Service
The Public Health Service Act (PHSA, 42 U.S.C. §§201 et. seq.) authorizes five student loan programs administered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA): (1) Health Professions Student Loans; (2) Loans for Disadvantaged Students; (3) Primary Care Loans; (4) Nursing Student Loans, and; (5) The Nurse Faculty Loan Program. These programs aim to, among other purposes, assist students who are from low-income backgrounds with the costs of attending health professional schools, to diversify the health workforce, and to increase the number of primary care physicians. As of July 31, 2019, approximately 81,800 HRSA loans, totaling $900 million, were outstanding. Today, most federal student loans are made through the William D. Ford Direct Loan program, which is authorized under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (HEA; P.L. 89-329, as amended) and administered by the Department of Education (ED). As of September 30, 2020, approximately $1.3 trillion in Direct Loan program loans, borrowed by or on behalf of 36 million individuals, were outstanding. Though HRSA's programs are relatively small in the larger context of federal student loans, they offer targeted assistance to health professional trainees and may provide incentives that differ from other loan programs (e.g., the ability to delay loan repayment during required clinical training, such as internship and residency). This report describes PHSA student loan programs, including borrower eligibility requirements, loan terms and conditions, and administrative rules. It also briefly describes the Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) program, a related student loan program authorized under the PHSA that was previously administered by HRSA and is now administered by ED. The report concludes with a table comparing these programs by borrower type, repayment terms, the number of participating schools, and the number and financial amount of outstanding loans.
Congressional Research Service. Web site: https://crsreports.congress.gov/
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: Policymakers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service (CRS)
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: Public Health Service Act; Higher Education Act Title IV
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A