Lufkin, TX: In an effort to increase the number of East Texas health care professionals at a time when such providers are in short supply, the T.L.L. Temple Foundation has negotiated a grant agreement for a medical school loan repayment program for physicians and dentists with the State Office of Rural Health at the Texas Department of Agriculture. Funding in the amount of $1,040,000 is included for the first cohort of eight participants, which will cover four years of student loan repayments for each individual, with a maximum award of $30,000 per year, per participant.
The State Office of Rural Health will administer the program for the foundation, which will include an annual application process, reporting, and will also ensure there is no income tax consequence for individuals receiving the loan repayment benefit. The participant will be required to serve for at least 12 consecutive months at an approved eligible site to qualify for an annual loan repayment award.
“We are excited to partner with the T.L.L. Temple Foundation to administer this program that will help recruit and retain much needed healthcare providers to rural Texas,” commented Trent Engledow, Director with the State Office of Rural Health.
Eligible clinical sites must be either tax-exempt under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, a local mental health authority, or a governmental/public health facility. Sites must also be located in one of the T.L.L. Temple Foundation’s 23 rural counties and have a primary focus on serving the underserved, including Medicaid, CHIP, Medicare, and other low-income under-insured or uninsured populations.
Dr. Wynn Rosser, President and CEO of the T.L.L. Temple Foundation, is hopeful that the program will attract new health care providers to the East Texas region. “Every county in our rural East Texas service area is a health professional shortage area. Access to care is one of our highest priorities. This loan repayment program is one of the strategies we are pursuing to ensure rural East Texans have the health care others take for granted.”
To apply for the Medical School Loan Repayment Program, please refer to the online application or contact Trent Engledow at 512-463-6121 or Trenton.Engledow@TexasAgriculture.Gov.
Applications for the T.L.L. Temple Foundation Loan Repayment Programare due by 5 PM on November 30, 2021.
