§ 256.223 — Health care professional recruitment program

Iowa § 256.223

• Jurisdiction: Iowa
• Title VII: EDUCATION, HISTORY, AND CULTURE
• Ch. 256: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Text

§7.
Forprogrameliminationtransition,see2025Acts,ch120,§8,10
256.224 Health care award program. Repealed by 2025 Acts, ch 120, §7.
Forprogrameliminationtransition,see2025Acts,ch120,§8,10
256.225 Mental health professional loan repayment program. Repealed by 2025 Acts,
ch 120, §7.
Forprogrameliminationtransition,see2025Acts,ch120,§8,10
256.226 Rural veterinarian loan repayment program — fund — appropriations.
1. Definitions. For purposes of this section, unless the context otherwise requires:
a. “Eligibleloan”meanstheveterinarian’stotalfederallyguaranteedStaffordloanamount
under the federal family education loan program or the federal direct loan program, or the
recipient’s federal grad plus loans, including principal and interest.
b. “Practice of food supply veterinary medicine” includes corporate and private practices
devoted to food animal medicine, mixed animal medicine located in a rural area, food safety,
epidemiology, public health, animal health, and other public and private practices that
contribute to the production of a safe and wholesome food supply.
c. “Rural service commitment area” means a city in Iowa with a population of less than
twenty-six thousand that is located more than twenty miles from a city with a population
of fifty thousand or more and which provides a dollar contribution equivalent to twelve and
one-half percent of the veterinarian’s total eligible loan amount upon graduation for deposit
in the rural veterinary care trust fund.
d. “Veterinary shortage area” means a designated veterinary service shortage situation in
Iowa identified and nominated by the state veterinarian, or recommended for designation in
accordance with the federal National Veterinary Medical Service Act, 7 U.S.C. §3101 et seq.,
and published by the United States department of agriculture.
2. Program established. A rural veterinarian loan repayment program is established
to be administered by the college student aid commission for purposes of providing
loan repayments for individuals who agree to practice as veterinarians in rural service
commitment areas or in veterinary shortage areas in Iowa for four years and meet the
requirements of this section. The commission shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A
to administer this section. The commission may accept gifts, grants, bequests, and other
private contributions, as well as state or federal moneys, for deposit in the fund created
under subsection 10.
3. Eligibility.
a. Anindividualiseligibletoapplytoenterintoaprogramagreementwiththecommission
if the individual meets any of the following requirements:

(1) Is enrolled in the final year of a doctor of veterinary medicine degree program at a
college of veterinary medicine accredited by the American veterinary medical association
council on education.
(2) Is a veterinarian licensed pursuant to chapter 169 who, within five years of applying
for this program, received a doctor of veterinary medicine degree from a college of veterinary
medicine accredited by the American veterinary medical association council on education.
b. An individual who participated in and received loan repayment awards through the
veterinary medicine loan repayment program administered by the United States department
of agriculture, national institute of food and agriculture, is ineligible to enter into a program
agreement under this section.
4. Program agreements. A program agreement shall be entered into by an individual
and the commission if the individual meets the requirements of subsection 3. Under the
agreement, to receive loan repayments pursuant to subsection 6, the individual shall fulfill all
of the following requirements:
a. Receive or possess a doctor of veterinary medicine degree, or the equivalent, from a
college of veterinary medicine accredited by the American veterinary medical association
council on education.
b. Possess,orapplyforandobtain,alicensetopracticeveterinarymedicineunderchapter
169.
c. Secure an offer of employment or establish and maintain a practice in a veterinary
shortage situation or rural service commitment area and engage in the full-time practice of
veterinary medicine for a period of four consecutive years after entering into the agreement
in the veterinary shortage area or rural service commitment area, unless the loan repayment
recipient receives a waiver from the commission to complete the years of practice required
under the agreement in another veterinary shortage area or rural service commitment area
pursuant to subsection 7.
5. Priority to certain applicants. The commission shall give priority to applicants who
graduated from a high school in Iowa or completed private instruction under chapter 299A.
6. Loan repayment amounts.
a. Unless the agreement entered into under subsection 4 stipulates otherwise, the amount
of loan repayment an individual who enters into an agreement shall receive if in compliance
with obligations under the agreement shall not exceed fifteen thousand dollars annually for
an eligible loan. Payments under this section may be made for each year of eligible practice
duringaperiodoffourconsecutiveyearsandshallnotexceedatotalofsixtythousanddollars
or the amount of outstanding eligible loans, whichever amount is less.
b. Subject to the availability of funding for this purpose, the commission shall enter into
at least five program agreements annually.
7. Selection of rural service commitment area or veterinary shortage area. A loan
repayment recipient shall notify the commission of the recipient’s rural service commitment
area or veterinary shortage area prior to beginning practice in the area in accordance with
subsection 4, paragraph “c”. The commission may waive the requirement that the loan
repayment recipient practice in the same rural service commitment area or veterinary
shortage area for all four years.
8. Rural service commitment area or veterinarian shortage area priority.
a. When possible, the commission shall enter into agreements under subsection 4 with
individuals who agree to practice in areas in the following priority order:
(1) Private practice food supply veterinary medicine in any veterinary shortage area.
(2) Private practice food supply veterinary medicine in a city in Iowa with a population
of less than twenty-six thousand that is located more than twenty miles from a city with a
population of fifty thousand or more, especially in remote or economically depressed rural
areas.
(3) Animal veterinary medicine in a rural service commitment area.
b. Notwithstanding paragraph “a”, the commission may consult with the state
veterinarian to determine prioritization in accordance with this subsection.
9. Postponement and satisfaction of service obligation.

a. Theobligationtoengageinpracticeinaccordancewithsubsection4shallbepostponed
for the following purposes:
(1) Active duty status in the armed forces, the armed forces military reserve, or the
national guard.
(2) Service in volunteers in service to America.
(3) Service in the federal peace corps.
(4) A period of rural service commitment to the United States public health service
commissioned corps.
(5) A period of religious missionary work conducted by an organization exempt from
federal income taxation pursuant to section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
(6) Any period of temporary medical incapacity during which the person obligated
is unable, due to a medical condition, to engage in full-time practice as required under
subsection 4, paragraph “c”.
b. Except for a postponement under paragraph “a”, subparagraph (6), an obligation
to engage in practice under an agreement entered into pursuant to subsection 4 shall not
be postponed for more than two years from the time the full-time practice was to have
commenced under the agreement.
c. An obligation to engage in full-time practice under an agreement entered into pursuant
to subsection 4 shall be considered satisfied when any of the following conditions are met:
(1) The terms of the agreement are completed.
(2) The person who entered into the agreement dies.
(3) The person who entered into the agreement, due to a permanent disability, is unable
to practice veterinary medicine.
(4) The commission waives the requirement that the person who entered into the
agreement fulfill the obligation to engage in practice.
d. If a loan repayment recipient fails to fulfill the obligation to engage in practice in
accordance with subsection 4, the recipient shall be subject to repayment to the commission
of the loan amount plus interest as specified by rule. A loan repayment recipient who fails to
meet the requirements of the obligation to engage in practice in accordance with subsection
4 may also be subject to repayment of moneys advanced by the rural service commitment
area as provided in any agreement with the rural service commitment area.
10. Trust fund established. A rural veterinary care trust fund is created in the state
treasury as a separate fund under the control of the commission. The commission may
accept gifts, grants, bequests, and other private contributions, as well as state or federal
moneys, for deposit in the fund. The commission shall remit all repayments made pursuant
to this section to the rural veterinary care trust fund. All moneys deposited or paid into the
trust fund are appropriated and made available to the commission to be used for meeting the
requirements of this section and increasing the number of veterinarians participating in the
program. Moneys in the fund up to the total amount that an eligible individual may receive
for an eligible loan in accordance with this section and upon fulfilling the requirements of
subsection 4, shall be considered encumbered for the duration of the agreement entered into
pursuant to subsection 4. Notwithstanding section 8.33, any balance in the fund on June
30 of each fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund of the state, but shall be available
for purposes of this section and to increase the number of veterinarians participating in the
program in subsequent fiscal years. Notwithstanding section 12C.7, subsection 2, interest
or earnings on moneys in the fund shall be credited to the fund and are appropriated to the
college student aid commission for purposes of administering any program described in this
subchapter VII, part 4.