[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 144 (Friday, July 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48925-48928]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-18942]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Extramural Clinical Research Loan Repayment Program for 
Individuals From Disadvantaged Backgrounds

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The National Institutes of Health (NIH) invites applications 
for the Extramural Clinical Research Loan Repayment Program for 
Individuals from Disadvantaged Backgrounds (ECR-LRP or Program) for 
fiscal year 2002. Pursuant to authority granted by Public Law 106-554, 
The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2001, that amended section 487E 
of the Public Health Service (PHS) Act (42 U.S.C. 288-5), as added by 
the National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act of 1993 (Public 
Law 103-43), the Secretary of Health and Human Services (Secretary), 
acting through the Director of NIH, has established a loan repayment 
program that offers the repayment of educational loan debt to qualified 
health professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds, that have 
substantial debt relative to income, and agree to conduct clinical 
research. The Director of NIH may enter into contracts with qualified 
health professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds that agree to 
engage in clinical research for a minimum of 2 years in exchange for 
loan repayments toward their outstanding educational loan debt, up to a 
maximum of $35,000 per year.

DATES: Interested persons may request information about the ECR-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 ECR-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) ``Clinical research'' is defined as patient-oriented clinical 
research conducted with human subjects, or research on the causes and 
consequences of disease in human populations involving material of 
human origin (such as tissue specimens and cognitive phenomena) for 
which an investigator or colleague directly interacts with human 
subjects in an outpatient or inpatient setting to clarify a problem in 
human physiology, pathophysiology or disease, or epidemiologic or 
behavioral studies, outcomes research or health services research, or 
developing new technologies, therapeutic interventions, or clinical 
trials.
    (2) ``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.
    (3) An ``individual from a disadvantaged background'' is defined as 
one who: (a) Comes from an environment that inhibited the individual 
from obtaining the knowledge, skill and ability required to enroll in 
and graduate from a health professions school; or (b) comes from a 
family with an annual income below a level based on low-income 
thresholds according to family size published by the U.S. Bureau of the 
Census, adjusted annually for the changes in the Consumer Price Index, 
and adjusted by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and 
Human Services (Secretary) for use in all health professions programs. 
The Secretary periodically publishes these income levels in the Federal 
Register. An applicant must certify his/her disadvantaged status under 
the above definition by submitting: (a) A written statement from the 
individual's former health professions school(s) that indicates that 
he/she qualified for Federal disadvantaged assistance during 
attendance; or (b) a personal statement explaining the applicability of 
the above definition to his/her circumstances (such statement should 
indicate the city, state and county where the applicant received the 
majority of his/her secondary education); or (c) documentation that he/
she has received any of the following financial aid: Health Professions 
Student Loans (HPSL); Loans for Disadvantaged Student Program; 
Scholarship for Individuals with Exceptional Financial Need; or other 
specific loans or scholarships designated for disadvantaged students. 
Current financial need alone is NOT sufficient to classify an 
individual as being from a disadvantaged background.
    (4) ``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 Secretary or his 
designee.
    (5) ``Repayable debt'' means the difference between the applicant's 
qualified educational loan debt and 50% of the applicant's debt 
threshold.

Background

    The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2001 (Public Law 106-554) 
was enacted on December 21, 2000, amending 487E of the Public Health 
Service (PHS) Act to authorize the Secretary of the Department of 
Health and Human Services (Secretary), through the Director of the 
National Institutes of Health (NIH), to enter into contracts with 
qualified health professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds. These 
health professionals are required to engage in clinical research 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. The program is known as the 
Extramural Clinical Research Loan Repayment Program for Individuals 
from Disadvantaged Backgrounds (ECR-LRP). Selected applicants become 
participants of the ECR-LRP only upon the execution of a contract by 
the Secretary or his designee.

Eligibility Requirements

    Specific eligibility criteria with regard to participation in the 
ECR-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 come from a disadvantaged background.
    (4) 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).
    (5) Applicants must not be Federal employees.
    (6) Applicants must have a research sponsor or mentor with 
experience in the area of proposed research and may be enrolled in a 
training program or

[[Page 48927]]

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).
    (7) Applicants must agree to engage in qualified clinical research 
for the entire period of their contract.
    (8) Individuals with existing service obligations to Federal, 
State, or other entities may not apply for the ECR-LRP, unless and 
until the existing service obligation is discharged or deferred for the 
length of program participation.
    (9) Individuals that have a Federal judgment lien against their 
property arising from a Federal debt from receiving Federal funds may 
not apply for the ECR-LRP until the judgment has been paid in full or 
otherwise satisfied.
    (10) Individuals will not be excluded from consideration under the 
ECR-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 located at 
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.

Participant's Obligation

    In exchange for the NCMHD repaying the participants' educational 
loans, participants must agree to: (1) Engage in qualified clinical 
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 ECR-LRP, the NCMHD will make loan repayments to the 
designated lender following the completion of each full quarter (3 
months) of service by the participant and upon the 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.) At the end 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 ECR-LRP will repay loans in the following order unless the 
Secretary 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 
ECR-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 ECR-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 
Secretary;
    (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 on failure to satisfy the service obligation. Programs 
with 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, ECR-LRP participants are wholly 
responsible for making payments or other arrangements to keep loans in 
a current payment status and to avoid incurring any

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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 ECR-LRP under OMB Approval No. 
0925-0361 (expires December 31, 2004).

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance number for the ECR-
LRP is 93.308.


    Dated: July 19, 2002.
Elias A. Zerhouni,
Director, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 02-18942 Filed 7-25-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-P