[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 144 (Friday, July 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48923-48925]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-18941]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities Research

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National 
Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD) invite 
applications for the extramural Loan Repayment Program for Health 
Disparities Research (HDR-LRP or Program) for fiscal year 2002. 
Pursuant to the authority granted by section 103 of Public Law 106-525, 
the Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education Act 
of 2000, that added section 485G of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act 
(42 U.S.C. 287c-33), the Director of NCMHD, has established a loan 
repayment program that offers the repayment of educational loan debt to 
qualified health professionals who agree to conduct research on 
minority health or other health disparities for a minimum of 2 years.

DATES: Interested persons may request information about the HDR-LRP 
beginning on July 26, 2002, and August 23, 2002 at 5 p.m. (eastern 
time) is the closing date and time for the application process.

ADDRESSES: Information regarding the requirements and application 
procedures for the HDR-LRP may be obtained by calling or writing: 
National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities, 6707 
Democracy Blvd., Suite 800, MSC 5465, Bethesda, MD 20892-5465, 
Attention: Kenya McRae, non-toll-free number: (301) 402-1366, e-mail: 
[email protected], Web site: http://www.ncmhd.nih.gov; or the Office of 
Loan Repayment Program, National Institutes of Health, toll-free-
number: (866) 849-4047, e-mail: [email protected], Web site: http://www.lrp.nih.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Definitions

    (1) ``Debt threshold'' is the minimum amount of qualified 
educational loan debt an applicant must have in order to be eligible 
for Program benefits. An applicant must have qualified educational loan 
debt equal to at least 20% of the applicant's institutional base salary 
or compensation at the time of execution of the LRP contract.
    (2) ``Health disparities population'' as determined by the Director 
of NCMHD, after consultation with the Director of the Agency for 
Healthcare Research and Quality, is defined as a population where there 
is significant disparity in the overall rate of disease incidence, 
prevalence, morbidity, mortality, or survival rates in the population 
as compared to the health status of the general population. For 
purposes of this announcement, the following populations are determined 
to be health disparities populations: Blacks/African

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Americans, Hispanics/Latinos, Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Asian 
Americans, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders and the medically 
underserved such as individuals from the Appalachian region.
    (3) ``Health disparities research'' is defined as basic, clinical, 
and behavioral research on a health disparities population (including 
individual members and communities of such populations) including the 
causes of such health disparities and methods to prevent, diagnose and 
treat such disparities.
    (4) ``Medically underserved'' refers to individuals that lack 
access to primary and specialty care either because they are 
socioeconomically disadvantaged and may or may not live in areas with 
high poverty rates or because they reside in rural areas. The term also 
refers to individuals that reside in geographic areas where the Index 
of Medical Underservice (IMU) is 62 or less. The Health Resource 
Services Administration (HRSA) criteria designates a service area with 
an IMU of 62 or less as a ``medically underserved area (MUA)''. The IMU 
is a weighted score derived from four variables: the ratio of primary 
medical care physicians per 1,000 population, infant mortality rate, 
percentage of population below the federal poverty level, and 
percentage of the population age 65 years or over.
    (5) ``Minority health conditions'' refers to all diseases, 
disorders, and other conditions (including mental health and substance 
abuse) that are unique to, more serious, or more prevalent in racial 
and ethnic minorities, for which the medical risk factors or types of 
medical interventions may be different, or research involving such 
populations as subjects or data on such individuals is insufficient.
    (6) ``Minority health disparities research'' is defined as basic, 
clinical, or behavioral research on minority health conditions, 
including research to prevent, diagnose, and treat such conditions.
    (7) ``Qualified educational loan debt'' is defined as educational 
loan debt incurred by health professionals for their undergraduate, 
graduate and/or health professional school educational expenses 
incurred at accredited institutions. It consists of the principal, 
interest, and related expenses of qualified Government and commercial 
loans obtained by the applicant for: (a) Tuition expenses; (b) other 
reasonable educational expenses required by the school(s) attended, 
including fees, books, supplies, educational equipment and materials, 
and laboratory expenses; and (c) the cost of room and board, and other 
reasonable living expenses as determined by the Director of NCMHD.
    (8) ``Repayable debt'' means the difference between the applicant's 
qualified educational loan debt and 50% of the applicant's debt 
threshold.

Background

    The Minority Health and Health Disparities Research and Education 
Act of 2000 (Public Law 106-525) was enacted on November 22, 2000, 
amending the Public Health Service (PHS) Act and adding section 485G 
that authorizes the Director of the National Center on Minority Health 
and Health Disparities (NCMHD) to establish a program entering into 
contracts with qualified health professionals. These health 
professionals are required to conduct minority health or other health 
disparities research for a minimum of two years, in consideration of 
the Federal Government repaying a portion of the principal and interest 
of their educational loans, up to a maximum of $35,000 per year, for 
each year of service. In addition to establishing the program, the 
Director, NCMHD, must ensure that not fewer than 50 percent of the 
contracts are awarded to qualified health professionals that are 
members of health disparities populations. This program is known as the 
Loan Repayment Program for Health Disparities Research (HDR-LRP). 
Selected applicants become participants of the HDR-LRP only upon the 
execution of a contract by the Director of NCMHD.

Eligibility Requirements

    Specific eligibility criteria with regard to participation in the 
HDR-LRP include the following:
    (1) Applicants must be a United States citizen, national, or 
permanent resident.
    (2) Applicants must have a M.D., Ph.D., Pharm.D., D.O., D.D.S., 
D.M.D., D.P.M., Sc.D., or equivalent doctorate degree from an 
accredited institution.
    (3) Applicants must have qualifying outstanding educational loan 
debt equal to or in excess of 20 percent of their institutional base 
salary or compensation. (Example: An applicant with a base salary of 
$40,000 per year must have a minimum outstanding educational loan debt 
of $8,000).
    (4) Applicants must not be Federal employees.
    (5) Applicants must have a research sponsor or mentor with 
experience in the area of the proposed research and may be enrolled in 
a training program or appointed under a temporary or permanent 
employment mechanism for at least two years. (Postdoctoral fellows and 
physicians completing their residencies are eligible to apply provided 
they meet all other eligibility requirements).
    (6) Applicants must agree to engage in qualified minority health or 
other health disparities research for the entire period of their 
contract.
    (7) Individuals with existing service obligations to Federal, 
State, or other entities may not apply for the HDR-LRP, unless and 
until the existing service obligation is discharged or deferred for the 
length of Program participation.
    (8) Individuals that have a Federal judgment lien against their 
property arising from a Federal debt from receiving Federal funds may 
not apply for the HDR-LRP until the judgment has been paid in full or 
otherwise satisfied.
    (9) Individuals will not be excluded from consideration under the 
HDR-LRP on the basis of age, race, culture, religion, gender, sexual 
orientation, disability or other non-merit factors.

Application Procedures and Selection Process

    Individuals should submit their completed on-line application 
package to the Director of the Office of Loan Repayment (OLR) who will 
forward it to the NCMHD, 6707 Democracy Boulevard, Suite 800, MSC 5465, 
Bethesda, MD 20892-5465. The NCMHD and OLR have provided the current 
deadlines, sources for assistance, and additional details regarding 
application procedures in an Applicant Information Bulletin that is 
located on the NIH LRP home page at http://www.lrp.nih.gov.
    The NCMHD will forward all qualified applications to the NCMHD Loan 
Repayment Review Panel (Panel), chaired by the Deputy Director, NCMHD, 
for review. The Panel will review and rank the applications based on 
criteria deemed appropriate, such as the personal statement, 
recommendations, training plan, research statement, institutional 
statement and research environment.
    Only applications receiving approval from the Panel and having 
contracts executed by the Director of NCMHD will receive funding, 
subject to the receipt of an appropriation and/or allocation of funds 
from the U.S. Congress, the NIH and/or NCMHD.
    As specified by statute, the Director, NCMHD, must ensure that at 
least 50 percent of the awards are made to qualified health 
professionals who are members of health disparities populations. By 
placing an emphasis on the recruitment and retention of investigators 
from health disparities populations, it is believed that not only

[[Page 48925]]

do the investigators have the potential of impacting the medical 
processes within their communities, but also, the ability to engage in, 
as well as promote the development of research programs that reflect an 
understanding of the variety of issues and problems associated with 
disparities in health status. This emphasis is consistent with the 
statute and the goals of both the NCMHD and the NIH to develop a 
diversified biomedical and behavioral research workforce and to reduce 
health disparities. Being a member of a health disparities population, 
however, is not a prerequisite for participation in the HDR-LRP. Any 
qualified health professional may apply for the program, provided the 
individual is conducting minority health or other health disparities 
research and meets all other eligibility requirements.

Participant's Obligation

    In exchange for the NCMHD repaying the participants' educational 
loans, participants must agree to: (1) Engage in minority health or 
other health disparities research for a minimum of 2 years; (2) make 
payments to lenders on their own behalf for periods of Leave Without 
Pay (LWOP); (3) pay monetary damages as required for breach of 
contract; and (4) satisfy other terms and conditions of the contract 
and application procedures.

Program's Obligations

    Under the HDR-LRP, the NCMHD will make loan repayments to the 
designated lenders following the completion of each full quarter (3 
months) of service by the participants and upon receipt of requested 
documentation from the participants and their supervisors/mentors. The 
total repayment amount shall not exceed $35,000 per year for each year 
of obligated service.
    Participants will not automatically qualify for the maximum amount 
of loan repayment. The amount the NCMHD will consider for repayment 
during the initial two-year contract shall be calculated as follows: 
one-fourth the repayable debt per year, up to a maximum of $35,000 per 
year. (Example: A participant with a base salary of $40,000 per year 
and an outstanding eligible educational loan debt of $100,000, would 
have a debt threshold of $8,000 and the repayable debt would be 
$96,000. Of the $96,000 repayable debt amount, the NCMHD would repay 
$24,000 a year in loan repayments--a total of $48,000 would be repaid 
over the two-year contract period.) Following the conclusion of the 
initial two-year contract, participants may apply for renewal contracts 
to satisfy any remaining repayable debt. Requests for renewal contracts 
are considered for approval on a competitive year-to-year basis. 
Funding of renewal contracts is contingent upon appropriation and/or 
allocation of funds from the U.S. Congress, the NIH and/or NCMHD.

Payment of Loans

    Because the first payment to the lenders on behalf of the 
participants will not commence until the end of the first full quarter 
of obligated service, participants should continue to make monthly loan 
payments until they have been informed that payments have been 
forwarded to their lenders. This measure enables the participants to 
maintain their loans in a current payment status.
    The HDR-LRP will repay loans in the following order unless the 
Director of NCMHD, determines that significant savings would result 
from repaying loans in a different priority order:
    (1) Loans issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Health and 
Human Services;
    (2) Loans issued or guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Education;
    (3) Loans issued or guaranteed by a State, the District of 
Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory or possession 
of the United States;
    (4) Loans issued or guaranteed by an Academic Institution; and
    (5) Other qualifying loans.
    If the participant has multiple loans in a given category, loans 
will be prioritized according to the interest rate (highest to the 
lowest).
    Financial obligations that do not qualify for repayment under the 
HDR-LRP include:
    (1) Loans not obtained from a government entity, academic 
institution, or commercial or other chartered lending institution (such 
as loans obtained from friends, relatives, or other individuals);
    (2) Loans for which contemporaneous documentation is not available;
    (3) Loans or portions of loans obtained for educational or living 
expenses which exceed a reasonable level as determined by the HDR-LRP 
upon review of the standard school budget or additional contemporaneous 
documentation for the year in which the loan was made;
    (4) Delinquent loans, loans in default, loans not current in their 
payment schedule, loans already repaid or those for which promissory 
notes have been signed after the contract has been executed by the 
Director of NCMHD;
    (5) Parent Loan for Undergraduate Students (PLUS);
    (6) Loans consolidated with another individual, including a spouse;
    (7) Equity loans that include educational loans as part of their 
balance or any other types of equity loans; and
    (8) Loans, financial debts or service obligations that convert to a 
loan or debt for failure to satisfy the service obligation. Programs 
that incur service obligations include but are not limited to the 
following:
     Physicians Shortage Area Scholarship Programs;
     National Research Service Award Program;
     National Health Service Corps Scholarship Program;
     Armed Forces (Army, Navy or Air Force) Health Professions 
Scholarship Program; and
     Indian Health Service Scholarship Program.
    During lapses in loan repayments, due either to administrative 
complications or a break in service, HDR-LRP participants are wholly 
responsible for making payments or other arrangements to keep loans in 
a current payment status and to avoid incurring any additional increase 
in either principal or interest. Penalties assessed participants as a 
result of administrative complications may be considered for 
reimbursement.

Additional Program Information

    This program is not subject to the provision of Executive Order 
12372, Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs. Under the 
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, OMB has approved 
the application forms for use by the HDR-LRP under OMB Approval No. 
0925-0361 (expires December 31, 2004).

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for the HDR-
LRP is 93.307.

    Dated: July 19, 2002.
Elias A. Zerhouni,
Director, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 02-18941 Filed 7-25-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P