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CalHealthCares Physician Loan Repayment Program Inaugural Application Cycle Begins April 1

CalHealthCares is a new loan repayment program that incentivizes physicians to provide care to Medi-Cal beneficiaries by repaying educational debt up to $300,000 in exchange for a five-year service obligation. All awardees will be required to maintain a patient caseload of 30 percent or more Medi-Cal beneficiaries. The inaugural application cycle for CalHealthCares will open on April 1, 2019.

The program—which aims to increase access to care for California's 13 million Medi-Cal patients—was made possible by Proposition 56, which provided a one-time allocation of $220 million for state loan repayment programs. The California Department of Health Care Services has contracted with Physicians for a Healthy California to administer the loan repayment program.

Awardees must:

  • Have an unrestricted license and be in good standing with your licensing board (Osteopathic Medical Board of California or Medical Board of California)
  • Be an active enrolled Medi-Cal provider without suspensions, disbarments or revocations
  • Have graduated from a physician residency program and/or completed a fellowship within the past five-years (on or after June 30, 2014)
  • Have an existing educational loan debt incurred while pursuing a medical degree
  • Not currently be participating in another loan repayment program
  • Practice in California
  • Maintain a patient caseload of 30% or more Medi-Cal beneficiaries

Eligible physicians are encouraged to apply starting April 1, 2019 – the deadline to apply is April 26, 2019.

Please visit CalHealthCares.org for more information.