Title 42The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73

§288–2 Extramural loan repayment program

Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 6A— - PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER III— - NATIONAL RESEARCH INSTITUTES › Part Part G— - Awards and Training › § 288–2

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The NIH Director must run a loan-repayment program that makes contracts with qualified health professionals. In return for doing research, the federal government will pay up to $50,000 a year toward the principal and interest on their education loans. The program keeps its main focus on contraception and infertility research; pediatric research (including pediatric drug studies); research on minority health disparities; clinical research; and clinical research by qualified professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Director may also target new scientific or workforce needs. Applicants must have large student loan debt compared to their income, by rules the Director sets. The Director can drop or add subcategories, but cannot have more subcategories than the five listed above. Rules in sections 254l–1, 254m, and 254o apply unless they conflict. Money for the program remains available until the expiration of the second fiscal year beginning after the fiscal year for which the amounts were made available.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §288–2

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The Director of the National Institutes of Health shall, as appropriate and based on workforce and scientific priorities, carry out a program through the subcategories listed in subsection (b)(1) (or modified subcategories as provided for in subsection (b)(2)), of entering into contracts with qualified health professionals under which such health professionals agree to conduct research in consideration of the Federal Government agreeing to repay, for each year of such research, not more than $50,000 of the principal and interest of the educational loans of such health professionals.
(b)(1)In carrying out the program under subsection (a), the Director of the National Institutes of Health—
(A)shall continue to focus on—
(i)contraception or infertility research;
(ii)pediatric research, including pediatric pharmacological research;
(iii)minority health disparities research;
(iv)clinical research; and
(v)clinical research conducted by appropriately qualified health professional 11 So in original. Probably should be “professionals”. who are from disadvantaged backgrounds; and
(B)may focus on an area of emerging scientific or workforce need.
(2)The Director of the National Institutes of Health may eliminate one or more subcategories provided for in paragraph (1) due to changes in workforce or scientific needs related to biomedical research. The Director may establish other subcategory areas based on workforce and scientific priorities if the total number of subcategories does not exceed the number of subcategories listed in paragraph (1).
(c)The Director of the National Institutes of Health may not enter into a contract with a health professional pursuant to subsection (a) unless such professional has a substantial amount of education loans relative to income (as determined pursuant to guidelines issued by the Director).
(d)The provisions of section 254l–1, 254m, and 254o of this title shall, except as inconsistent with subsection (a) of this section, apply to the program established in subsection (a) to the same extent and in the same manner as such provisions apply to the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program established in subpart III of part D of subchapter II.
(e)Amounts available for carrying out this section shall remain available until the expiration of the second fiscal year beginning after the fiscal year for which the amounts were made available.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2016—Pub. L. 114–255, § 2022(b)(1), amended section catchline generally. Prior to amendment, catchline read as follows: “Loan repayment program for research with respect to contraception and infertility”. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 114–255, § 2022(b)(2), inserted heading and, in text, substituted “The Director of the National Institutes of Health shall, as appropriate and based on workforce and scientific priorities, carry out a program through the subcategories listed in subsection (b)(1) (or modified subcategories as provided for in subsection (b)(2)),” for “The Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, shall establish a program” and “research, not more than $50,000” for “service, not more than $35,000” and struck out “(including graduate students)” after “qualified health professionals” and “with respect to contraception, or with respect to infertility,” after “conduct research”. Subsecs. (b), (c). Pub. L. 114–255, § 2022(b)(4), added subsecs. (b) and (c). Former subsecs. (b) and (c) redesignated (d) and (e), respectively. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 114–255, § 2022(3), (5), redesignated subsec. (b) as (d) and inserted heading. Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 114–255, § 2002(3), (6), redesignated subsec. (c) as (e) and inserted heading. 2007—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 110–154, which directed substitution of “Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development” for “National Institute on Child Health and Human Development”, was executed by making the substitution for “National Institute of Child Health and Human Development” to reflect the probable intent of Congress. 1998—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 105–392 substituted “$35,000” for “$20,000”.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 288–2

Title 42The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73