43-28.1 Dentists' Loan Repayment Program

Download pdf

Loading PDF...


CHAPTER 43-28.1DENTISTS' LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM43-28.1-01. Loan repayment program - Dentists - Maximum amount of funds. Eachyear the state health council shall select from a pool of applicants no more than three dentists<br>who shall provide dental services to communities in this state. The dentists are eligible to receive<br>funds for the repayment of their education loans. The funds, which are payable over a four-year<br>period, may not exceed eighty thousand dollars per applicant. If the state health council accepts<br>any gifts, grants, or donations under this chapter, the council may select additional dentists for<br>participation in the loan repayment program under this chapter.43-28.1-01.1. Loan repayment program for dentists in public health and nonprofitdental clinics.1.If funds have been appropriated specifically for loan repayment to dentists who<br>practice in a public health setting or a nonprofit dental clinic that uses a sliding fee<br>schedule to bill patients, during the first year of each biennium the health council<br>shall select from a pool of applicants no more than three dentists who provide or will<br>provide dental services in a public health clinic or nonprofit dental clinic that uses a<br>sliding fee schedule to bill patients. A dentist who receives a grant under this section<br>shall use the grant funds to repay the dentist's educational loans. The maximum<br>grant award is sixty thousand dollars per recipient which is paid to the recipient over<br>a two-year period.2.Unless otherwise provided under this section, sections 43-28.1-02 and 43-28.1-04,<br>subsections 1, 2, and 3 of section 43-28.1-03, and sections 43-28.1-05, 43-28.1-06,<br>43-28.1-07, 43-28.1-08, and 43-28.1-09 apply to this grant.3.A recipient who receives a grant under this section shall serve three years as a<br>full-time practicing dentist in the public health setting or a nonprofit clinic that uses a<br>sliding fee schedule to bill patients and must be paid the grant funds during the first<br>two years of this service.43-28.1-02. Loan repayment program - Dentists - Powers of state health council.The state health council may:1.Determine the eligibility and qualifications of an applicant for loan repayment funds<br>under this chapter.2.Identify communities that are in need of a dentist and establish a priority ranking for<br>participation in the program by the selected communities.3.Create and distribute a loan repayment application.4.Determine the amount of the loan repayment funds for which a dentist is eligible<br>under this chapter and, in making this determination, examine any outstanding<br>education loans incurred by the applicant.5.Establish conditions regarding the use of the loan repayment funds.6.Enter a four-year nonrenewable contract with the dentist and the selected<br>community to provide to the dentist funds for the repayment of education loans in<br>exchange for the dentist agreeing to practice in the selected community.7.Receive and use funds appropriated for the program.8.Enforce any contract under the program.Page No. 19.Cancel a contract for reasonable cause.10.Participate in federal programs that support the repayment of education loans<br>incurred by dentists and agree to the conditions of the federal programs.11.Accept property from an entity.12.Cooperate with the state department of health to effectuate this chapter.43-28.1-03. Dentist selection criteria - Eligibility for loan repayment.1.In establishing the criteria regarding a dentist's eligibility for loan repayment funds<br>under this chapter, the state health council shall include consideration of:a.The dentist's training in general dentistry or in a dental specialty and the extent<br>to which such services are needed in a selected community.b.The dentist's commitment to serve in a community that is in need of a dentist.c.The compatibility of the dentist with a selected community.d.The date by which the dentist would be available for service to the selected<br>community.e.The dentist's competence and professional conduct.f.The dentist's willingness to accept medicare and medicaid patients.2.A dentist who is selected to receive loan repayment funds under this chapter:a.(1)May not have practiced dentistry full time in this state during the three<br>years immediately preceding the application;(2)Must have graduated from an accredited graduate specialty training<br>program in dentistry during the year immediately preceding the<br>application or within one year after the date of the application; or(3)Must be enrolled in an accredited graduate specialty training program in<br>dentistry; andb.Must be licensed to practice dentistry in this state.3.Dentists selected shall contract to provide full-time dental services for a minimum of<br>four years in one or more selected communities.4.For the purposes of a dentist selected for loan payment who practices within fifteen<br>miles [24.14 kilometers] of the city limits of Bismarck, Fargo, or Grand Forks, to<br>qualify to receive a yearly disbursement under this chapter during that year of<br>obligated service, the dentist must have:a.Received dental medical payments of at least twenty thousand dollars in the<br>form of medical assistance reimbursement; orb.Practiced at least two full workdays per week at a public health clinic or at a<br>nonprofit dental clinic that uses a sliding fee schedule to bill the nonprofit dental<br>clinic's patients.43-28.1-04. Community selection criteria.Page No. 21.The state health council shall apply the following criteria in selecting a community<br>with a defined need for the services of a dentist:a.The size of the community, with rural communities with a population under two<br>thousand five hundred given highest priority, communities with a population<br>between two thousand five hundred and ten thousand given the next highest<br>priority, and communities with a population greater than ten thousand given the<br>lowest priority. In cities with a population greater than ten thousand, first priority<br>must be given to dentists who commit to satellite to underserved areas and<br>then to dental specialists in cities with an identified need for a specialist.b.The number of dentists practicing in the community and the surrounding area.c.The access by residents to dentists practicing in the community and the<br>surrounding area.d.The mix of dental specialties in the community and surrounding area.e.The degree to which residents support the addition of a dentist within the<br>community.2.The state health council shall give priority for participation to a community that<br>demonstrates a need for a dentist or for an individual who is trained in a dental<br>specialty.3.In evaluating communities for participation in this program, the state health council<br>may consult with public and private entities and visit the communities.43-28.1-05. Eligible loans. The state health council may provide for loan repaymentfunds to a dentist who has received an education loan. The council may not provide funds for the<br>repayment of any loan that is in default at the time of the application. The amount of repayment<br>must be related to the dentist's outstanding education loans. A dentist is eligible to receive loan<br>repayment funds in an amount equal to the outstanding balance of the dentist's education loans<br>with applicable interest, or eighty thousand dollars, whichever is less. Loan repayment funds<br>may not be used to satisfy other service obligations under similar programs.43-28.1-06.Breach of loan repayment contract.If a dentist who receives loanrepayment funds under this chapter breaches the loan repayment program contract by failing to<br>begin or failing to complete the obligated service, the dentist is liable for the total amount of any<br>loan repayment funds received. Any damages the state is entitled to recover under this chapter<br>must be paid to the state health council, within one year from the date of the breach. Any<br>amounts not paid within one year from the date of the breach are subject to the collection<br>process and may be recovered through deductions in medicaid payments.Damagesrecoverable for a breach of the contract include all interest, costs, and expenses incurred in<br>collection, including attorney's fees. Damages collected under this section by the state health<br>council must be deposited in the state general fund. The state health council may agree to<br>accept a lesser measure of damages for breach of a loan repayment program contract if<br>compelling reasons are demonstrated.43-28.1-07. Release from contract obligation.1.The state health council shall release a dentist from the dentist's loan repayment<br>contract, without penalty, if:a.The dentist has completed the service requirements of the contract;b.The dentist is unable to complete the service requirement of the contract<br>because of a permanent physical disability;Page No. 3c.The dentist demonstrates to the state health council extreme hardship or shows<br>other good cause justifying the release; ord.The dentist dies.2.A decision by the state health council not to release a dentist from the dentist's loan<br>repayment contract without penalty is reviewable by district court.43-28.1-08. Payment. The state health council may not provide any loan repaymentfunds to a dentist under this chapter until the dentist has practiced at least six months on a<br>full-time basis in the selected community. Loan repayment funds for a year of obligated service<br>are payable by the state health council no later than the end of the fiscal year in which the dentist<br>completes the year of obligated service.43-28.1-09.Gifts, grants, and donations - Continuing appropriation.The statehealth council may accept any conditional or unconditional gift, grant, or donation for the purpose<br>of providing funds for the repayment of dentists' educational loans.If any entity desires toprovide funds to the council to allow an expansion of the program beyond the three dentists<br>contemplated by this chapter, the entity shall commit to fund fully the expansion for a period of<br>four years. The council may contract with any public or private entity and may expend any<br>moneys available to the council to obtain matching funds for the purposes of this chapter. All<br>money received as gifts, grants, or donations under this section is appropriated as a continuing<br>appropriation to the state health council for the purpose of providing funds for the repayment of<br>additional dentists' educational loans.43-28.1-10. New practices - Grants.1.A dentist who graduated from an accredited dental school within the previous five<br>years and is licensed to practice in North Dakota may submit an application to the<br>state health council for a grant for the purpose of establishing a dental practice in a<br>city in the state which has a population that does not exceed seven thousand five<br>hundred.2.The state health council may award a maximum of two grants per year and shall<br>establish the criteria for the grant program under subsection 1 which must include:a.A maximum grant award of fifty thousand dollars per applicant;b.A requirement that the community must provide a fifty percent match for a<br>grant;c.A requirement that a dentist who receives a grant under this section must use<br>the funds for buildings, equipment, and operating expenses;d.A provision that the grant must be distributed in equal amounts over a five-year<br>period; ande.A requirement that a dentist selected for a grant under this section must commit<br>to practice in the community for a minimum of five years.Page No. 4Document Outlinechapter 43-28.1 dentists' loan repayment program