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Get to Know the National Health Service Corps

 
The community health center workforce includes more than 255,000 staff across the country and 3,000 staff in Tennessee. The National Health Service Corps supports the development of the primary care workforce with scholarships and loan repayment. Read on to learn more about the NHSC and how to apply for loan repayment by February 3rd.
 
Community health centers employ more than 255,000 staff across the country and care for more than 29 million patients.1 Health centers in Tennessee employ 3,000 staff who provide high-quality, compassionate primary care in underserved communities. Community health centers are federally designated as Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs). This designation allows community health centers to participate in programs like the National Health Service Corps (NHSC), which help develop and sustain a robust primary health care workforce. 
 
What is the National Health Service Corps? 
Established in 1972, the National Health Service Corps connects health care providers with opportunities to practice in underserved areas. The NHSC supports the professional development of health care providers, ensuring a culturally competent and community-based primary care workforce who cares for vulnerable patients.2  
 
What is the NHSC Loan Repayment Program? 
The NHSC offers scholarships and loan repayment to eligible health care providers who practice in a Health Professional Shortage Areas (HSPAs), including at community health centers. 
 
Providers with outstanding loans are eligible for NHSC Loan Repayment as long as they are working at a community health center, or will begin work by July 18, 2022 and are one of the following types of providers:  Physicians (DO/MD); Nurse Practitioners (NP); Physician Assistants (PA); Certified Nurse Midwives (CNM); Health Service Psychologists (HSP); Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW); Psychiatric Nurse Specialists (PNS); Marriage and Family Therapists (MFT); Licensed Professional Counselors (LPC); Dentists; Dental hygienists; SUD Counselors; Pharmacists; Registered Nurses.  
 
The National Health Service Corps received a historic level of funding for 2022. Eligible providers are encouraged to apply for the loan repayment programs by February 3, 2021, regardless of the health center's HPSA score.  
 
 
 
[1] Health Center Program: Impact and Growth. (2022). Retrieved from https://bphc.hrsa.gov/about/healthcenterprogram/index.htm
[2] National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program. (2022). Retrieved from https://ruralhealth.und.edu/projects/primary-care-office/nhsc-lrp 

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