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B 26-0756

Health Professional Loan Repayment Amendment Act of 2026

26th Council Period (2025-2026) Introduced by Phil Mendelson

Expands HPLRP eligibility to certified addiction counselors and adopts flexible, CPI-based annual repayment caps to attract and retain health professionals.

Referred to Committee on Health
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Bill Summary · B 26-0756

Overview

  • Topic: Health Professional Loan Repayment Amendment Act of 2026 (B 26-0756)
  • Jurisdiction: District of Columbia
  • Purpose: amend the District of Columbia Health Professional Recruitment Program Act of 2005 to expand eligibility, adjust loan repayment amounts, and modify administration and timing for the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program (HPLRP)
  • Introduced by: Mayor Muriel Bowser (with Council sponsor/Chair Phil Mendelson)
  • Status: Introduced July 9, 2026; referred to Committee on Health (July 14, 2026)

Main purpose and intent

  • Expand eligibility to include certified addiction counselors as health professionals who can participate in the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program.
  • Clarify and potentially increase maximum loan repayment amounts and ensure flexibility in funding and administration so DC Health can fulfill existing commitments and recruit new participants within available funding.
  • Replace a rigid statutory annual repayment schedule with a regulatory framework to set annual repayment amounts in a more adaptable way.
  • Align program operations with funding opportunities and local health workforce needs, particularly in Health Professional Shortage Areas or medically underserved areas.

Key provisions and changes

  • Eligibility expansion

    • Add certified addiction counselors to the defined group of “other health professionals” eligible for the HPLRP (in addition to physician assistants, physicians, dentists, etc.).

  • Debt repayment amounts and limits

    • For full-time physicians and dentists:
    • Eligible to have up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $165,000, for up to 4 years of service.
    • For full-time physicians with certain specialties/sub-specialties (e.g., obstetrics/gynecology, psychiatry, oncology, cardiology, neurology, infectious diseases, pulmonary, nephrology, endocrinology, podiatry, ophthalmology, etc.), and require practice in Ward 7 or 8:
    • Eligible to have up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $200,000, for up to 4 years of service.
    • For other full-time health professionals (non-physician/denist categories):
    • Eligible to have up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $90,000, for up to 4 years of service.
    • For part-time physicians:
    • Up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $82,000, for up to 4 years of service.
    • For part-time physicians with eligible specialties/sub-specialties (and Ward 7/8 requirement):
    • Up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $100,000, for up to 4 years of service.
    • For part-time other health professionals:
    • Up to 100% of total debt repaid, not to exceed $45,000, for up to 4 years of service.

  • New regulatory authority and flexibility

    • The Mayor (DC Health) would have authority to:
    • Annually modify allocation procedures and total loan repayment amounts based on available funding.
    • Establish the maximum annual repayment amount and the maximum annual percentage of a participant’s debt that may be repaid.
    • New subsection (g) authorizes:
    • Annual CPI-based increases to the maximum total loan repayment amounts.
    • Rules setting the maximum percentage of debt repaid annually (not to exceed 30% of total debt) and the maximum annual dollar amount (not to exceed 30% of the applicable maximum total loan repayment amount).

  • Administrative and contractual framework

    • The maximum annual repayment amounts for each category will be specified in the contract between the participant and the Director (as required by section 8 of the Act).
    • Explicited that the stated maximum repayment amounts are not mandatory annual repayment obligations (i.e., discretionary within the contract).

Who would be affected

  • Eligible health professionals who participate in the HPLRP, including:
    • Physicians and dentists (full-time and part-time)
    • Physician assistants
    • Certified addiction counselors (newly added)
    • Other health professionals as defined by the revised Act
  • DC Health and the Mayor's Office of Health (through the Director of the Department of Health) would administer and fund the program.
  • Participants practicing in Ward 7 or Ward 8 may have enhanced caps for certain specialties or sub-specialties (as noted for full-time and part-time roles).

Procedural and timeline aspects

  • Effective date
    • The act would take effect after the Mayor’s approval (or Council override of a veto) and a 30-day Congressional review period, per the DC Home Rule Act.
  • Administrative timeline
    • The changes authorize regulatory rulemaking to set annual repayment schedules, adjust funding allocations, and apply CPI increases, enabling ongoing adjustments rather than fixed statutory schedules.
  • Fiscal impact
    • The Council adopts the fiscal impact statement from the committee report (as required by the DC Home Rule Act). Specific fiscal details would be developed in related budget and rulemaking processes.

Practical impact and considerations

  • The bill is designed to increase the District’s ability to attract and retain health professionals, especially in underserved areas, by offering more flexible and potentially higher loan repayment opportunities, while keeping cost controls via annual percentage caps and CPI-based adjustments.
  • The addition of certified addiction counselors expands the pool of eligible professionals to address substance use treatment capacity.
  • The regulatory framework aims to provide DC Health with the flexibility needed to respond to funding fluctuations and workforce needs over time.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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