Title 42The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73

§292t Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds

Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 6A— - PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER V— - HEALTH PROFESSIONS EDUCATION › Part Part A— - Student Loans › Subpart subpart ii— - federally-supported student loan funds › § 292t

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Federal money put into a health professions school’s student loan fund must only be used to make loans to people from disadvantaged backgrounds and to pay the costs of collecting those loans and interest. Money paid back on those loans and any earnings in the fund must also be used only for those same loan purposes. The government will only give this money to a school if the school has programs to recruit and keep disadvantaged students (including racial and ethnic minorities) and to recruit and keep minority faculty. The school must also teach about minority health issues, give students clinical experience at clinics that serve disadvantaged people, work with high schools and colleges to help prepare and recruit disadvantaged students, and run a mentor program to help disadvantaged students finish their degrees. The school must start these activities within one year after it gets its first federal contribution and keep them going while the loan fund exists. Money given before October 1, 1990, and the matching school funds, may be used for loans to disadvantaged people as allowed by section 292s(a)(2)(B). The Secretary will define who is “disadvantaged” and will give extra consideration to schools whose share of underrepresented minority students is above the national average.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §292t

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

(a)With respect to amounts appropriated under subsection (f), each agreement entered into under section 292q of this title with a school shall provide (in addition to the provisions required in subsection (b) of such section) that—
(1)any Federal capital contribution made to the student loan fund of the school from such amounts, together with the school contribution appropriate under subsection (b)(2)(B) of such section to the amount of the Federal capital contribution, will be utilized only for the purpose of—
(A)making loans to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds; and
(B)the costs of the collection of the loans and interest on the loans; and
(2)collections of principal and interest on loans made pursuant to paragraph (1), and any other earnings of the student loan fund attributable to amounts that are in the fund pursuant to such paragraph, will be utilized only for the purpose described in such paragraph.
(b)The Secretary may not make a Federal capital contribution for purposes of subsection (a) for a fiscal year unless the health professions school involved—
(1)is carrying out a program for recruiting and retaining students from disadvantaged backgrounds, including racial and ethnic minorities; and
(2)is carrying out a program for recruiting and retaining minority faculty.
(c)The Secretary may not make a Federal capital contribution for purposes of subsection (a) for a fiscal year unless the health professions school involved agrees—
(1)to ensure that adequate instruction regarding minority health issues is provided for in the curricula of the school;
(2)with respect to health clinics providing services to a significant number of individuals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds, including members of minority groups, to enter into arrangements with 1 or more such clinics for the purpose of providing students of the school with experience in providing clinical services to such individuals;
(3)with respect to public or nonprofit private secondary educational institutions and undergraduate institutions of higher education, to enter into arrangements with 1 or more such institutions for the purpose of carrying out programs regarding the educational preparation of disadvantaged students, including minority students, to enter the health professions and regarding the recruitment of such individuals into the health professions;
(4)to establish a mentor program for assisting disadvantaged students, including minority students, regarding the completion of the educational requirements for degrees from the school;
(5)to be carrying out each of the activities specified in any of paragraphs (1) through (4) by not later than 1 year after the date on which the first Federal capital contribution is made to the school for purposes of subsection (a); and
(6)to continue carrying out such activities, and the activities specified in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b), throughout the period during which the student loan fund established pursuant to section 292q(b) of this title is in operation.
(d)With respect to Federal capital contributions to student loan funds under agreements under section 292q(b) of this title, any such contributions made before October 1, 1990, together with the school contributions appropriate under paragraph (2)(B) of such section to the amount of the Federal capital contributions, may be utilized for the purpose of making loans to individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, subject to section 292s(a)(2)(B) of this title.
(e)For purposes of this section, the term “disadvantaged”, with respect to an individual, shall be defined by the Secretary.
(f)(1)
(2)In making Federal capital contributions to student loan funds for purposes of subsection (a), the Secretary shall give special consideration to health professions schools that have enrollments of underrepresented minorities above the national average for health professions schools.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

A prior section 724 of act July 1, 1944, was classified to section 293d of this title prior to the general revision of this subchapter by Pub. L. 102–408.

Amendments

1998—Subsec. (f)(1). Pub. L. 105–392, § 132(b), struck out heading and text of par. (1). Text read as follows: “With respect to making Federal capital contributions to student loan funds for purposes of subsection (a) of this section, there is authorized to be appropriated for such contributions $8,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1998 through 2002.” Pub. L. 105–392, § 132(a), substituted “$8,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 1998 through 2002” for “$15,000,000 for fiscal year 1993”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1998 Amendment Pub. L. 105–392, title I, § 132(b), Nov. 13, 1998, 112 Stat. 3575, provided that the repeal of subsec. (f)(1) of this section is effective Oct. 1, 2002.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 292t

Title 42The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73