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MURIEL BOWSER
MAYOR
July 9, 2026
The Honorable Phil Mendelson
Chairman
Council of the District of Columbia
John A . Wilson Building
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 504
Washington, D.C. 20004
Dear Chairman Mendelson:
Please find attached the Health Professional Loan Repayment Amendment Act of 2026 for
enactment by the Council of the District of Columbia.
If enacted, the proposed legislation would amend the District of Columbia Health Professional
Recruitment Program Act of 2005, effective March 8, 2006 (D.C. Law 16-71; D.C. Official Code
§ 7-751.01 et seq.) to add certified addiction counselors to the definition of other health
professionals eligible to participate in the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program
(HPLRP). The proposed legislation also amends the Health Professional Recruitment Program
Act of 2005 to ensure DC Health can meet its contractual obligations for existing providers and
recruit new participants for the Program within funding limitations.
The proposed legislation clarifies that participants can have up to 100% of their total debt repaid
by the HPRLP, but not to exceed a specified amount based upon the health professional license
they hold. It also provides the Director of the Department of Health with the authority to modify
allocation procedures and total loan repayment amounts and based on available funding. This
legislation ensures that DC Health can effectively implement this program, which continues to
increase access to health care for District residents, especially those in Health Professional
Shortage Areas or Medically Underserved Areas.
I urge the Council to take prompt and favorable action on the enclosed legislation.
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3 at the request of the Mayor
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7 A PROPOSED RESOLUTION
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10 IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
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14 To declare the existence of an emergency with respect to the need to amend the
15 District of Columbia Health Professional Recruitment Program Act of 2005 to
16 add certified addiction counselors as health professionals eligible to participant in
17 the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program, and to remove mandatory loan
18 repayment requirements from the statute ensure the Department of Health can
19 administer the health professional loan repayment program within operational
20 parameters.
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22 RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That
23 this resolution may be cited as the "Health Professional Loan Repayment Amendment
24 Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2026".
25 Sec. 2. (a) The Department of Health administers the Health Professional Loan
26 Repayment Program, which contracts with licensed providers to deliver care in medically
27 underserved areas across the District. Section 9 of the District of Columbia Health
28 Professional Recruitment Program Act of 2005, effective March 8, 2006 (D.C. Law 16-
29 71; D.C. Official Code§ 7-751.01 et seq.), (the "2005 Act") sets minimum loan
30 repayment amounts for participants in the program.
31 (b) The current loan repayment rates exceed the amount the federal grant
32 reimburses to the District, and the Department of Health does not have statutory authority
33 to make loan repayments less than the minimum amounts required by the 2005 Act.
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1 (c) The District has historically used local funds, including a Non-Lapsing Fund,
2 to cover the difference. However , that fund was depleted in FY24 and now carries a
3 balance of $0.
4 ( d) DC currently provides supplemental payments up to $26,000 per participant
5 per year over the federal reimbursable rate, but no longer has a funding source to cover
6 that gap.
7 (e) The next contract renewal window opens June 27, 2026. Renewing contracts
8 at current statutory rates would generate a projected shortfall of $333,000 in FY27, with
9 larger shortfalls in subsequent years.
10 (f) Absorbing the shortfall would require cutting other healthcare access
11 programs that serve the same underserved communities. It would also require reducing
12 the number of providers under contract, since every unfunded dollar spent above the
13 federal rate is a dollar that cannot fund an additional contract.
14 (g) Current law also obligates the program to four years of funding once a two-
15 year contract is initiated. The four-year obligation limits the Department of Health's
16 ability to adjust provider placements as community needs evolve and from redirecting
17 resources to higher-priority shortage areas.
18 (i) The Council finds that this emergency legislation is necessary for the
19 immediate preservation of the health, safety, and welfare of District residents by enabling
20 the Department of Health to adjust the Health Professional Loan Repayment Program's
21 repayment schedule in accordance with the availability of funds, prior to the opening of
22 the new contract renewal window, to prevent the District from incurring unfunded
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1 obligations resulting in the need to cut other healthcare access programs that serve
2 underserved communities.
3 Sec. 3. The Council of the District of Columbia determines that the
4 circumstances enumerated in section 2 constitute emergency circumstances making it
5 necessary that the "Health Professional Loan Repayment Emergency Amendment Act of
6 2026" be adopted after a single reading.
7 Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately.
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