National Health Service Corps Extension Act

National Health Service Corps Extension Act - Sets forth a new title of the Public Health Service Act: Title XVII - National Health Service Corps.

Establishes the National Health Service Corps ("Corps") for the purpose of assisting in the establishment and initial operation of medical practices in areas containing medically underserved populations, as the term is defined in this title.

Directs the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare to designate, on an annual basis, the medically underserved populations of each State.

Directs the Secretary to establish a ten-member Council on Medically Underserved Populations. Requires the Council to establish criteria for designating medically underserved populations within one year of the enactment of this title.

Requires the Secretary to provide assistance to private primary health care personnel who desire to locate and establish medical practices in areas with medically underserved populations and who have entered into an agreement with the Secretary in accordance with procedures set forth in this title.

Authorizes the Secretary to make grants for a period of up to three years to approved applicants. States that such grants may include: (1) salary of the physician in accordance with the pay scale set forth in this title; (2) salaries of other personnel necessary to the practice; (3) the construction, purchase, lease or rent of facilities for the practice, including modernization or alteration of existing buildings; (4) the purchase of all equipment appropriate for the practice; (5) the costs of appropriate training and education during the initial three-year period of assistance; and (6) other costs appropriate for the establishment and initial operation of the practice.

Provides a guaranteed minimum income to each private participant in the program equal to the basic pay, allowances, and bonuses that the participant would receive if he were a member of the Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service. Provides for the recovery from the participant by the Secretary of that amount by which the total income of the participant for any fiscal year exceeds the amount that the participant would have received as a member of the Commissioned Corps of the Public Health Service. Provides for a five-year extension of a participant's agreement with the Secretary.

Sets forth provisions to encourage the development of organizational arrangements for the provision of medical care in designated areas including group practice arrangements and the use of physician extenders.

Requires the Secretary to provide technical assistance for the establishment and initial operation of the medical practice, including but not limited to the following: (1) appropriate financial support systems, including fee schedules and billing and fee collection systems, arrangements for reimbursement under the Medicare and Medicaid programs, or any other third party payor; (2) linkages for consultation and referral; (3) hospital privileges; (4) obtaining the necessary State and Federal licenses; (5) recruitment of supporting personnel; and (6) development of systems for hours of operation, patient appointment, patterns of patient flow, and medical record systems.

Requires the Secretary to provide relocation expenses to the participant and to provide other forms of assistance to the participant in establishing a residence and a practice in a designated area.

Requires an initial three year commitment of an applicant for participation in the program established by this title. Requires participants, in addition: (1) to charge individuals to whom the participant provides health services at the usual and customary rate prevailing in the area; (2) not to discriminate against any individual on the basis of the individual's ability to pay or because the payment would be made under Medicare or Medicaid; and (3) not to discriminate against any individual on the basis of race, religion, sex, color, creed, or national origin.

Sets forth provisions for recovering, from an individual who breaches an agreement made pursuant to this title, a portion of the amount extended by the Secretary to aid in the establishment of a practice.

Requires the Secretary to develop information programs to inform health personnel throughout the nation, including both participating health personnel and those in training, of the assistance available under this Act.

Directs the Secretary to make a maximum effort to reduce professional isolation of health personnel who already reside in or decide to locate in designated areas.

Authorizes the Secretary to assign Federal employees to provide health services to medically underserved populations when civilian medical care personnel are not available. Requires that any person receiving health services provided by Federal personnel be charged for such services on a fee-for-service or other basis at a rate approved by the Secretary; except that if it is determined under regulations that the person is unable to pay such charge, the Secretary shall provide that these services be furnished at a reduced rate or without charge. Authorizes the Secretary, under regulations, to adjust the monthly pay of each Federal physician and dentist engaged directly in the delivery of health services to a medically underserved population, following termination of his service obligation (if any) incurred as a result of receipt of scholarship assistance, by an amount not to exceed $1,000 so that such pay will be competitive with that of members of the same profession with equivalent training and time in practice.

Authorizes the Secretary to make one-time grants, not in excess of $25,000 to medically underserved populations to be used for the purpose of establishing medical practice management systems, acquiring equipment and other expenses related to the provision of health services.

Directs the Secretary to report annually to the Congress on: (1) the designation of medically underserved populations; (2) the number of primary health care personnel required to satisfy the needs of such areas; (3) the number of applicants under this title during the preceding fiscal year and the number and types of personnel assisted or assigned in the preceding year; and (4) the number of health personnel electing to continue to provide health services to medically underserved populations after completion of any obligated service requirements, the number of such personnel who do not make such election, and their reasons for not making such election, if known.

Directs the Council on Medically Underserved Populations to conduct a study: (1) to analyze the current distribution of physicians by speciality; (2) to project such distribution by geographic areas in the years 1980, 1985, and 1990; and (3) to develop a reliable and appropriate methodology to establish the optimal distribution of physicians by specialty and subspecialty by geographic area.

Directs the Council to conduct a study to determine the levels at which physicians are reimbursed for their services, ways in which such levels are determined, the effects of variations of such reimbursement fees on geographic distribution of physicians and other primary health care professionals, and optional ways of improving the reimbursement system in order to improve the geographic distribution of such health professionals.

Authorizes to be appropriated $36,000,000 for fiscal year 1977 and $45,000,000 for fiscal year 1978.