[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 23 (Thursday, March 3, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2010-S2011]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. HAGEL (for himself, Mr. Durbin, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. 
        Lautenberg, and Mrs. Murray):
  S. 506. A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a 
scholarship and loan repayment program for public health preparedness 
workforce development to eliminate critical public health preparedness 
workforce shortages in Federal, State, local, and tribal public health 
agencies; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. HAGEL. Mr. President, I rise today with Senator Durbin to 
introduce the Public Health Preparedness Workforce Development Act of 
2005. This legislation aims to increase the

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pipeline of qualified public health workers at the Federal, State, 
local and tribal levels by offering scholarships to students going into 
the public health field. It also encourages current professionals to 
stay in the public health field by providing loan repayments in 
exchange for a commitment of a designated number of years of service in 
public health.
  The average age of lab technicians, epidemiologists, environmental 
health experts, microbiologists, IT specialists, public health 
administrators and others who make up the public health workforce is 
47, seven years older than the average age of the Nation's workforce. 
Over the next five years, my State of Nebraska will have more public 
health workers who are eligible for retirement than any other state in 
the Nation.
  To encourage young people to enter the public health field, this 
legislation authorizes $35 million per year for scholarships and $195 
million per year for loan repayments. Eighty percent of the funds would 
be dedicated for state and local public health workers, with bonus 
payments available to those who agree to be placed in under-served 
areas.
  There are critical public health workforce shortages. We cannot 
afford to lose so many experienced workers just when our public health 
workforce should be expanding to meet increasing health needs. The 
ability of the public health system to respond to emerging infectious 
diseases like West Nile Virus, food-borne illnesses, or bioterrorism 
relies on a well-trained, adequately staffed public health network at 
all levels. It is important that we address this problem before it 
becomes a crisis.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
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