IHS Loan Repayment Program

The purpose of the Indian Health Service (IHS) Loan Repayment Program (LRP) is to recruit and retain highly qualified professional registered nurses (RN's) to meet staffing needs of the Indian Health Service, Tribal or Urban health programs. All IHS/Tribal/Urban facilities are given a ranking LRP score. The LRP score is calculated using staffing information collected from quarterly Nurse Position Reports (NPR). NPR's are submitted by the facilities Director of Nurses (DON), Supervisory Clinical Nurse (SCN), or Human Resources (HR) designee. Sites with high scores receive priority over sites that have lower scores. Consistent with this priority ranking, in determining which applications to approve, the IHS will give priority to matched and complete applications made by American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) and to individuals recruited through the efforts of Indian tribes, tribal or Indian health programs.

Complete LRP applications are reviewed and considered for an award on a monthly basis. All awards are subject to the availability of funding. The application deadline is the Friday of the second full week of each month. Starting October 1, 2003, applications from RN's at a site with a score of 70 or above will be considered for LRP awards beginning with the first scheduled LRP award cycle.

LRP awardees made during the previous fiscal year who are eligible for an extension must apply in writing to the LRP for an extension. All extensions will be made before new awards are processed. The Federal fiscal year (FY) is from October 1 through September 30.

All LRP awardees incur a two year service obligation. The service obligation must be completed at the qualifying facility. Exceptions: Requests to transfer during the first two years of a LRP service obligation will be considered if the LRP recipient submits documentation verifying "medical hardship." All requests must be submitted to the LRP Program Specialist. All requests will be reviewed, approved and/or rejected by the Division of Nursing. Applicants approved to transfer to another facility must transfer to a facility that has the same LRP rank score or higher.

RN's employed with the Indian Health Service, Tribal and Urban health programs or individuals seeking employment opportunities as a RN will increase their chance of receiving an LRP award by being matched (employed) or offered employment at a facility with a LRP ranking score between 100 and 90.

HOW LRP SCORES ARE USED TO MAKE AWARDS FOR ADVANCED PRACTICE NURSES AND REGISTERED NURSES