Health Professions Educational Assistance Act

Health Professions Educational Assistance Act Title I: General Provisions - Renumbers, consolidates, and rearranges existing provisions in title VII of the Public Health Service Act which authorizes Federal assistance to schools of the health professions. Expands the membership of the National Advisory Council on Health Professions Education to include representatives of all the health professions schools assisted under title VII of the Public Health Service Act. Sets forth a revised advanced funding provision.

Title II: Assistance for Construction of Teaching Facilities - Extends provisions of the Public Health Service Act authorizing grants, loan guarantees, and interest subsidies for the construction of teaching facilities for the training of physicians, dentists, pharmacists, optometrists, podiatrists, veterinarians, and public health personnel.

Authorizes $100 million for fiscal year 1975; $125 million for fiscal year 1976; and $150 million for fiscal year 1977 and each of the next 2 fiscal years for the construction grant program. Authorizes $2 million for fiscal year 1975; $2.5 million for fiscal year 1976; and $3 million for fiscal year 1977 and each of the next 2 fiscal years for loan guarantees and interest subsidies.

Title III: Student Assistance; National Health Service Corps - Revises the student assistance programs authorized under the Public Health Service Act. States that students pursuing a graduate degree in public health would become eligible to apply for health professions student loans under this Act. Repeals the advanced traineeship program for students of public health.

Increases the maximum amount of a health professions student loan to equal a health professions student's tuition plus $2,500 per year. Provides that authorizations for the health professions student loan fund are $60 million for each fiscal year 1975 through 1979. Provides for the forgiveness or cancellation of professional educational expenses at the rate of 50 percent for the first year and 50 percent for the second year of service in a health manpower shortage area. Makes students pursuing graduate degrees in public health eligible for the loan forgiveness program.

Obligates each individual who receives any student loan under title VII to serve at least 2 years in an area or institution designated by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare as having a shortage of health manpower. States that the individual could serve the obligated period in a shortage area as designated by the Secretary, or could serve as a member of the National Health Service Corps. Provides that individuals who fail to serve the obligated period would be required to pay damages equal to twice the original value of the student assistance received.

Repeals the program of health professions student scholarships and the physician shortage area scholarship program, to be replaced by an amended Public Health and National Health Service Corps scholarship training program. Sets forth the features of such program.

Title IV: Grants for Health Professions Schools - Extends the existing programs of capitation and special project grants to health professions schools and the program of assistance to area health education centers. Provides that schools of public health shall be eligible for capitation grants awarded on the basis of the number of students enrolled. States that each grant will equal one-third of the net educational costs of training a student multiplied by the number of full-time students enrolled in the school.

Provides total authorizations for the capitation grant program of $292,273,250 for fiscal year 1975, $304,626,000 for fiscal year 1976; and $316,747,350 for fiscal year 1977 and each of the next 2 fiscal years.

Prohibits the Secretary from making any capitation grant after June 30, 1974, unless the school assures the Secretary that each student accepted for enrollment agrees to serve in the National Health Service Corps or in a medically underserved area as a private practitioner.

Authorizes grants for projects to assist schools of medicine, osteopathy, and dentistry to plan, develop, and implement a nutrition education curriculum. Provides for authorizations for the special projects program of $100 million for each fiscal year 1975 through 1979.

Extends the program of start-up assistance for new schools of medicine, osteopathy, and dentistry. Authorizes $11 million for each fiscal year 1975 through 1979. Repeals the program of financial distress grants to health professions schools.

Revises the program of assistance to area health education centers by requiring all new centers receiving assistance to: (1) encourage the establishment or maintenance of programs to alleviate shortages of health personnel through training or retraining; (2) provide training programs leading to more efficient utilization of health personnel; (3) initiate new types and patterns or improve existing patterns of training, retraining, continuing education, and advanced training of personnel; and (4) encourage new or more effective approaches to the organization and delivery of health services through the use of team approaches. Authorizes appropriations for area health education centers of $75 million for each fiscal year 1975 through 1979.

Title V: Assistance for Specialized Training - Extends provisions of the Public Health Service Act which authorize grants to hospitals to develop training programs in family medicine and to provide financial assistance to students and physicians who participate in family medicine programs. Authorizes, for the family medicine grant program, $40 million for each fiscal year 1975 through 1979.

Repeals the programs for grants for computer technology health care demonstration programs and grants for training, traineeships, and fellowships for health professions teaching personnel.

Authorizes grants to medical and osteopathic schools to train U.S. citizens who transfer from foreign medical schools to a U.S. medical school. Authorizes for such program $5 million for fiscal year 1975; $10 million for fiscal year 1976; and $15 million for fiscal year 1977 and each of the next 2 fiscal years.

Title VI: Allied Health Personnel - Defines the term "allied health personnel". Authorizes a program of allied health special project grants for States, schools and representatives of the allied health professions. Authorizes, for this allied health special projects grant program, $40 million for fiscal 1975; $45 million for fiscal year 1976; and $50 million for fiscal year 1977 and the next 2 fiscal years.

Revises the advanced traineeship program for professional allied health personnel and authorizes appropriations of $7.5 million for fiscal year 1975; $9 million for fiscal year 1976; and $10.5 million for fiscal year 1977 and the next 2 fiscal years.

Authorizes appropriations for the identification of and assistance to financially, culturally, or educationally deprived persons who have a potential to become allied health personnel.

Requires the compilation and dissemination of statistics on allied health personnel and submission to the Senate Labor and Public Welfare Committee and the House Interstate and Foreign Commerce Committee of an annual report on these statistics.

Title VII: Postgraduate Physician Training - Authorizes a program to certify a limited number and an appropriate balance of postgraduate physician training programs. States that the program would be administered by the Secretary, according to the recommendations of the National Council on Postgraduate Physician Training and 10 regional councils on postgraduate physician training throughout the Nation.

Directs the Secretary, according to the recommendations of the council, to set the total number of internship and residency positions to be certified nationwide in the following year. Provides that the total number could not exceed 110 percent of the total number of medical and osteopathic degrees granted in that year. Authorizes the Secretary to compensate institutions which are forced to decrease their number of postgraduate physician training positions because of the 110 percent limit.

Requires the Secretary to make grants of up to $100,000 to develop new additional training positions in specialties, and in geographic areas, if the national and regional councils determines such additional positions are needed.

Authorizes a study to determine the desired balance of physicians in the various medical and surgical specialties and subspecialties.

Title VIII: Minimum National Licensure of Physicians and Dentists - Requires the Secretary, in consultation with appropriate professional organizations, to develop and establish national standards for the licensure of all physicians and dentists who wish to practice in the United States.

Directs the Secretary to prepare a national examination to initially license physicians and dentists and subsequent reexaminations to renew licenses which would be given at least every 6 years.

States that, under the provisions of the national licensure program, individual States would be encouraged to establish their own licensure programs, which must be in accordance with national standards.

Provides that the new national licensure relationships between States must comply with the national standards for licensure of physicians and dentists.

Prohibits States from establishing any requirement for the licensure of physicians and dentists which: (1) would be inconsistent with national standards; or (2) would require that the individual applying for the license reside in the State for a certain period of time.

Prohibits a State from renewing the license of any physician or dentist who is obligated, under the provisions of this Act, to provide health service in a medically underserved area or as a member of the National Health Service Corps, unless that physician or dentist has fulfilled his obligation, as certified by the Secretary.