I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 6578 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish the Public Health 
Workforce Loan Repayment Program. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
APRIL 21, 2020 
Mr. CROW (for himself and Mr. BURGESS) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish the 
Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment Program. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Public Health Work-
force Loan Repayment Act of 2020’’. 
SEC. 2. PUBLIC HEALTH WORKFORCE LOAN REPAYMENT 
PROGRAM. 
Part D of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 254b et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subpart: 
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‘‘Subpart XIII—Public Health Workforce 
‘‘SEC. 340J. LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Health 
and Human Services shall establish a program to be 
known as the Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment 
Program (referred to in this section as the ‘Program’) to 
assure an adequate supply of and encourage recruitment 
of public health professionals to eliminate critical public 
health workforce shortages in local, State, and Tribal pub-
lic health agencies. 
‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to participate in 
the Program, an individual shall— 
‘‘(1)(A) be accepted for enrollment, or be en-
rolled, as a student in an accredited academic edu-
cational institution in a State or territory in the 
final year of a course of study or program leading 
to a public health or health professions degree or 
certificate and have accepted employment with a 
local, State, or Tribal public health agency, or a re-
lated training fellowship, as recognized by the Sec-
retary, to commence upon graduation; or 
‘‘(B)(i) have graduated, during the preceding 
10-year period, from an accredited educational insti-
tution in a State or territory and received a public 
health or health professions degree or certificate; 
and 
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‘‘(ii) be employed by, or have accepted employ-
ment with, a local, State, or Tribal public health 
agency or a related training fellowship, as recognized 
by the Secretary; 
‘‘(2) be a United States citizen; 
‘‘(3)(A) submit an application to the Secretary 
to participate in the Program; and 
‘‘(B) execute a written contract as required in 
subsection (c); and 
‘‘(4) not have received, for the same service, a 
reduction of loan obligations under section 428J, 
428K, 428L, 455(m), or 460 of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1078–10, 1078–11, 
1078–12, 1087e(m), and 1087j). 
‘‘(c) CONTRACT.—The written contract referred to in 
subsection (b)(3)(B) between the Secretary and an indi-
vidual shall contain— 
‘‘(1) an agreement on the part of the Secretary 
that the Secretary will repay, on behalf of the indi-
vidual, loans incurred by the individual in the pur-
suit of the relevant degree or certificate in accord-
ance with the terms of the contract; 
‘‘(2) an agreement on the part of the individual 
that the individual will serve in the full-time employ-
ment of a local, State, or Tribal public health agency 
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or a related fellowship program in a position related 
to the course of study or program for which the con-
tract was awarded for a period of time equal to the 
greater of— 
‘‘(A) 3 years; or 
‘‘(B) such longer period of time as deter-
mined appropriate by the Secretary and the in-
dividual; 
‘‘(3) an agreement, as appropriate, on the part 
of the individual to relocate to a priority service area 
(as determined by the Secretary) in exchange for an 
additional loan repayment incentive amount to be 
determined by the Secretary; 
‘‘(4) a provision that any financial obligation of 
the United States arising out of a contract entered 
into under this section and any obligation of the in-
dividual that is conditioned thereon, is contingent on 
funds being appropriated for loan repayments under 
this section; 
‘‘(5) a statement of the damages to which the 
United States is entitled, under this section for the 
individual’s breach of the contract; and 
‘‘(6) such other statements of the rights and li-
abilities of the Secretary and of the individual as the 
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