Bill Text: NY A04279 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Establishes the nurse loan repayment program; authorizes the commissioner to award loan repayment awards to nurses serving in underserved areas or nursing homes.

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-03 - referred to health [A04279 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A04279-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          4279

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    February 14, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, STECK, COOK, McDONOUGH, BRABENEC -- read
          once and referred to the Committee on Health

        AN  ACT  to amend the public health law, in relation to establishing the
          nurse loan repayment program

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Section  2807-m  of  the  public health law is amended by
     2  adding a new subdivision 5-c to read as follows:
     3    5-c. Registered nurse loan repayment program.  (a)  Beginning  January
     4  first,  two thousand twenty-four, the commissioner is authorized, within
     5  amounts available pursuant to subdivision five-a  of  this  section,  to
     6  make loan repayment awards:
     7    (i)  to  registered  professional  nurses  or other licensed practical
     8  nurses specialities determined  by  the  commissioner  to  be  in  short
     9  supply,  licensed  to  practice  nursing pursuant to article one hundred
    10  thirty-nine of the education law, who agree to  practice  for  at  least
    11  five  years in an underserved area or nursing home, as determined by the
    12  commissioner.  Such registered professional nurse or licensed  practical
    13  nurse  shall be eligible for a loan repayment award of up to one hundred
    14  fifty thousand dollars over a five year period distributed  as  follows:
    15  fifteen percent of total loan debt not to exceed twenty thousand dollars
    16  for  the  first  year;  fifteen percent of total loan debt not to exceed
    17  twenty-five thousand dollars for the  second  year;  twenty  percent  of
    18  total loan debt not to exceed thirty-five thousand dollars for the third
    19  year;  and  twenty-five percent of total loan debt not to exceed thirty-
    20  five thousand dollars per year for the fourth and fifth years  of  prac-
    21  tice in such area; and
    22    (ii)  to general hospitals and other health care providers to adminis-
    23  ter as part of their recruitment packages; provided the  loan  repayment
    24  awards  shall  be  administered  consistent  with the provisions of this
    25  subdivision.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD07991-01-3
        A. 4279                             2

     1    (b) Loan repayment awards made to a registered professional  nurse  or
     2  licensed  practical  nurse pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subdivision
     3  shall not exceed the total qualifying outstanding debt of the registered
     4  professional nurse or licensed practical nurse  from  student  loans  to
     5  cover tuition and other related educational expenses, made by or guaran-
     6  teed  by the federal or state government, or made by a lending or educa-
     7  tional institution approved under title IV of the federal higher  educa-
     8  tion  act.    Loan  repayment  awards shall be used solely to repay such
     9  outstanding debt.
    10    (c) Any recipient of funds pursuant to this subdivision who  practices
    11  less  than  two  years in an underserved area or nursing home, as deter-
    12  mined by the commissioner, shall repay all funds paid in amounts  to  be
    13  determined  by  the commissioner pursuant to this subdivision, and shall
    14  no longer be eligible for future payments under  this  subdivision.  The
    15  rate  of  interest  applied shall be determined by the commissioner, but
    16  will not be less than the rate of interest set by  the  commissioner  of
    17  taxation  and  finance  with respect to underpayments of personal income
    18  tax pursuant to section six hundred eighty-four of the tax law.
    19    (d) The commissioner is authorized to apply any  funds  available  for
    20  purposes  of paragraph (a) of this subdivision for use as matching funds
    21  for federal grants for the purpose of assisting states in operating loan
    22  repayment programs pursuant to section three hundred thirty-eight  I  of
    23  the public health service act.
    24    (e)  The  commissioner  may,  in his or her sole discretion, postpone,
    25  change or waive the service obligation set forth in subparagraph (i)  of
    26  paragraph (a) of this subdivision.
    27    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.