Allied Health Care Professional Assistance Law (110 ILCS 905/)

Chapter 110 — Higher Education

Student Assistance

This text is maintained by the Legislative Reference Bureau for legislative drafting purposes and is NOT the official text of the Illinois Compiled Statutes; the only official copy is the printed copy maintained by the Secretary of State.

Sec. 2001. Short title

This Article may be cited as the Allied Health Care Professional Assistance Law.

(Source: P.A. 86-1187.)

Sec. 2002. Purpose

The purpose of this Law is to establish a program in the Illinois Department of Public Health to upgrade primary health care services for all citizens of the State, by providing grants and scholarships to allied health care professionals who will agree to practice in areas of the State demonstrating the greatest need for more professional medical care. The program shall encourage allied health care professionals to locate in areas where health manpower shortages exist and to increase the total number of allied health care professionals in the State.

(Source: P.A. 86-1187.)

Sec. 2003. Definitions

As used in this Law, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:

(a) "Eligible allied health care professional" means a person who meets all of the following qualifications:

(1) he or she is studying an allied health care field in a medical or other school located in Illinois and accredited in its field or otherwise approved by the Department, and agrees to obtain a license to practice in his or her field in this State;

(2) he or she exhibits financial need as determined by the Department; and

(3) he or she agrees to practice full-time in a Designated Shortage Area as an allied health care professional one year for each year he or she is a scholarship recipient.

(b) "Department" means the Illinois Department of Public Health.

(c) "Designated Shortage Area" means an area designated by the Director of Public Health as a physician shortage area, a medically underserved area, or a critical health manpower shortage area as defined by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, or as further defined by the Department to enable it to effectively fulfill the purpose stated in Section 2002. Such areas may include the following:

(1) an urban or rural area which is a rational area for the delivery of health services;

(2) a population group; or

(3) a public or nonprofit private medical facility.

(Source: P.A. 86-1187.)

Sec. 2004. Grants and scholarships; rules

(a) The Department may establish a program of grants and scholarships to be awarded to eligible allied health care professionals, subject to amounts appropriated for that purpose, and may award grants and scholarships to such persons in order to accomplish the purposes expressed in Section 2002. The Department shall adopt criteria for the awarding of grants and scholarships under this Law, including standards of financial need.

(b) The Department also shall adopt all rules and regulations necessary to implement the provisions of this Law.

(Source: P.A. 86-1187.)

Sec. 2005. Failure to fulfill scholarship obligation

Scholarship recipients who fail to fulfill the obligation described in paragraph (3) of subsection (a) of Section 2003 shall pay to the Department an amount equal to 3 times the amount of the annual scholarship grant received for each unfulfilled year of the obligation together with interest at 7% per year on that amount. However, this obligation to repay does not apply when the failure to fulfill the obligation results from involuntarily leaving the profession due to a decrease in the number of health care professionals employed in the State or from the death or adjudication as incompetent of the person holding the scholarship. No claim for repayment may be filed against the estate of such a decedent or incompetent.

Each person applying for such a scholarship shall be provided with a copy of this Section at the time he or she applies for the benefits of such scholarship.

(Source: P.A. 86-1187.)