South Dakota Health Care Professionals Eligible for Loan Relief

Some local healthcare professionals might be getting some assistance in paying off their student loans.

The South Dakota Department of Health was recently awarded $1,509,000 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Health Resources and Services Administration to support a State Loan Repayment Program within South Dakota.

For the next three years, South Dakota will receive $503,000 annually to support primary care providers working full-time or half-time in a Health Professional Shortage Area.

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Full-time recipients can receive up to $25,000 yearly for a two-year service commitment in one of these qualified areas.

Eligible disciplines include physician, dentist, dental hygienist, nurse practitioner, certified nurse-midwife, physician assistant, health service psychologist, licensed clinical social worker, psychiatric nurse specialist, licensed professional counselor, marriage and family therapist, registered nurse, pharmacist, and alcohol/substance abuse counselor.

Applications are now available and will be reviewed and approved on a first-come, first-served basis. Application requirements include:

• U.S. Citizen (U.S. born or naturalized) or U.S. National
• Licensed to practice in South Dakota
• Applying to, accepted to, or currently working at an eligible site that is located in a federally designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HSPA)
• Unpaid government or commercial loans for school tuition, and reasonable education and living expenses related to the education of the participant
• Loans must be segregated from all other debts (that is, not consolidated with non-educational loans