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> WWAMI Medical Education Program
Montana Rural Physician Incentive Program
Program Summary
Purpose
The Montana Rural Physician Incentive Program, authorized by the 1991 Montana Legislature and amended by the 1997 Montana Legislature, was established to encourage primary care physicians to practice in medically underserved areas of rural Montana.
Towards this end, the Rural Physician Incentive Trust Fund has been established to facilitate payment of qualified educational debts of rural physicians who practice in areas of the state that are medically underserved and that demonstrate the need for assistance in physician recruitment. The trust is funded by fees assessed to all Montana allopathic and osteopathic medical students participating in the WICHE and WWAMI programs.
Benefits and Obligations
Program benefits allow payment of up to $45,000 in total toward the qualified educational loans of participating health professionals over a one- to five-year period of service in a location of physician need. Graduated payments are disbursed directly to verified lending institutions in six-month increments over the physician's designated service period. The graduated payment schedule is as follows*:
| $3,500 - 6 mos. of service |
$4,500 - 36 mos. of service |
| $3,500 - 12 mos. of service |
$5,000 - 42 mos. of service |
| $4,000 - 18 mos. of service |
$5,000 - 48 mos. of service |
| $4,000 - 24 mos. of service |
$5,500 - 54 mos. of service |
| $4,500 - 30 mos. of service |
$5,500 - 60 mos. of service |
*Note: Completion of the full six-month service period is required prior to disbursement.
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These benefits are in addition to any salary or other compensation received by the physician until the obligation is satisfied. If an individual is receiving funds from a federal loan repayment program, payments from the Montana Rural Physicians Incentive Program will not begin until federal funds have been exhausted. State and federal loan repayment benefits may not be received concurrently.
Eligibility Requirements
Individuals eligible to apply for funds must be citizens or nationals of the United States who:
- have a doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathic medicine degree, and
- are eligible for licensure in the State of Montana.
Characteristics of Qualifying Locations
It is the intent of the legislation on which this program is based to provide assistance for those communities of rural Montana which have difficulty in attracting and maintaining enough physicians to serve their population.
In general, such communities have populations of less than 8,000 and hospitals with less than 50 beds. Many of these areas have been designated by the United States government as health provider shortage areas (HPSA). Finally, hospitals and other community organizations in these areas possess documentable records of their inability to recruit and retain sufficient numbers of physicians.
Procedures
Application Process
Applications are made jointly by a physician and an organization or institution (i.e., a hospital or clinic) located in the community in which the physician wishes to practice. The application form contains sections for both the physician and supporting institution/organization to complete. The physician applicant must also submit loan verification forms for all educational loans being considered for repayment. Only verifiable medical education loans qualify toward the $45,000 maximum repayment benefit.
The following application materials must be submitted by prospective physician applicants to receive consideration for program participation:
- MRPIP Loan Repayment Application
- Loan Information/Verification Form
- MRPIP Loan Repayment Contract
Selection and Approval Process
Applications are reviewed for program eligibility by an advisory committee appointed by the Commissioner of Higher Education (Board or Regents' Policy 940.25). Qualified applications are prioritized for participation based upon community physician needs and the availability of funds. In the event it is not possible to fund all qualified applications, preference will be given to those physicians who contributed to the trust fund during their participation in the WICHE or WWAMI programs. All advisory committee nominations of physicians to receive awards are submitted to the Board of Regents for final approval.
To Request Application Materials, Contact:
Office/Commissioner of Higher Education
2500 Broadway
Helena, MT 59620-3201
(406) 444-0322 - Phone
(406) 444-1469 - Fax
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