TO CREATE THE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM.

Behavioral health loan help with repayment risks

Arkansas creates loan repayment help for eligible mental health professionals, licensed alcoholism and substance abuse counselors, and their trainees. Mental health professionals must be Arkansas-licensed and certified by the state’s behavioral health division. Selected participants must commit to at least three years of full-time work in a designated underserved community. The state identifies these communities using worker availability, poverty levels, and access to care. Each completed service year earns a payment equal to 15% of average educational debt among indebted graduates in that profession. That average comes from the year closest to selection; payments stop after three years and cannot exceed the designated loan’s remaining balance. Participants must obtain their own qualifying education loans, verify service, and document that payments went toward the designated loan. Further payments are withheld until required checks are complete; moving does not end eligibility if qualifying service continues. Failing to complete the contract requires repayment of all assistance plus 5% annual interest, unless the Secretary waives recovery for urgent circumstances that prevented completion. The Department of Human Services selects applicants annually within available funding, favoring those finished or nearly finished with training. Selection considers community needs, and funding is divided by profession using vacancy rates; unfilled shares can be reassigned. A new state fund supports the program through designated grants, gifts, donations, federal funds, and other legally authorized money. The law sets no funding amount, and unused money carries into the next budget year.