Primary Care Practitioner Loan Redemption Program

The Primary Care Practitioner Loan Redemption Program promotes access to primary care services in medically underserved areas of the State by improving the distribution of primary care health providers, including physicians, dentists, physician assistants and certified nurse practitioners and certified nurse midwives, by providing for the redemption of eligible student loans expenses of providers in exchange for a specified periods of service in medically underserved areas. Funding for this program is subject to state appropriations.

The program will provide up to $120,000 in student loan redemption for two to four years of service as a primary care provider in areas of medicine defined by the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in areas ranked by the Commissioner of Health and Senior Services reflecting a health professional shortage. Funding for this program is subject to state appropriations and available funding.

Eligibility:

Applicants must:

• Be a resident of the State of New Jersey 
• Be licensed to practice in the State of New Jersey; 
• Secure an undergraduate medical school, dental school, or other primary care professional school faculty member’s recommendation for program participation; 
• Execute a contact for a minimum period of 2 years, which includes a six-month probationary period, with the Authority or its designated agent upon the completion of the final year of residency training in the case of a physician; at the end of the final year of undergraduate dental training or residency training if the training is required in a primary care dental specialty in the case of a dentist; and at the end of the final year of other primary care training in the case of another primary care provider; 
• Be granted final acceptance into the program following the six-month probationary period; 
• In the case of a physician, have completed an accredited residency training program and received a recommendation from the director of the training program concerning participation in the loan redemption program; 
• Agree to practice primary care medicine, dentistry, or another primary care profession in a State designated underserved area; 
• Not be in default on any qualifying student loan; 
• Service must begin within two years of the completion of training or residency. 

Application and Selection

Annually, applicants must submit a completed program application for consideration. Applicants will be matched to a State designated underserved area. The applicant must complete the six-month probationary period and receive a recommendation of either the continuation of the applicant’s placement or a change of placement. Satisfactory completion of the probationary period will be considered final acceptance as a program participant and the applicant will receive full credit for the probationary period in the calculation of the first full year of service.