OAR 409-036-0035: Eligibility Criteria and Application Requirements specific to Primary Care Loan Forgiveness Payments

(1) Eligibility Criteria. (a) Eligible provider types include: (A) Physicians (MD, DO or ND) who practice in the specialties of family medicine or general practice, general internal medicine, geriatrics, community psychiatry, pediatrics, or obstetrics and gynecology; (B) Physician Associates who practice in the specialties of family medicine or general practice, general internal medicine, geriatrics, pediatrics or obstetrics and gynecology; (C) Nurse Practitioners who practice in the specialties of adult primary care, women's health care, geriatrics, pediatrics, family practice, psychiatry or nurse midwifery; (D) Dentists in general or pediatric practice; and (E) Pharmacists who practice in general or psychiatric pharmacy. (b) An eligible provider must: (c) Be enrolled at an academic institution and in good academic standing; (d) Participate in either the Oregon Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) Scholars Program or be accepted to an Authority-approved Oregon rural training track; (e) Be prepared to begin practice at a Qualified Practice Site within 90 calendar days of graduation or completion of residency, as applicable; (f) Commit to practice full-time at a Qualified Practice Site for the duration of their obligation to the Authority or one obligation year for every year of funding; and (g) Not participate in the National Health Services Corps (NHSC), NurseCorps, Oregon Partnership State Loan Repayment Program or the NHSC Scholarship Program, or any other state or federal program(s) offering funds in exchange for a service obligation, unless expressly permitted under state or federal law. (2) Application Requirements. Applications for Primary Care Loan Forgiveness Payments must be completed and submitted pursuant to the instructions posted on the Office Website. (a) The Office will notify eligible providers if submissions are incomplete. Complete applications must be submitted before the application deadline posted on the Office Website to be considered. (b) The Office will notify applicants of the status of their completed applications within 90 calendar days of a complete application submission. (3) An eligible provider that is currently employed at a Qualified Practice Site or has an employment contract with a Qualified Practice Site must submit a letter to the Office, with a copy submitted to the Authority, attesting that the site meets the requirements of OAR 409-036-0015. (4) The Authority may consider the factors outlined in OAR 409-036-0070 in determining whether to accept an eligible provider for participation. (5) Maximum award amounts for Primary Care Loan Forgiveness payments under this rule must be awarded in the manner provided in OAR 409-036-0080. (6) Non-compliance. A loan forgiveness recipient may be considered in non-compliance with these rules when the eligible provider fails to meet certain requirements as outlined in OAR 409-036-0120.