Compilation of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia
Department 195 - GEORGIA BOARD FOR HEALTH CARE WORKFORCE
Chapter 195-25 - GEORGIA PHYSICIAN EDUCATION LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM
Rule 195-25-.01 - General Definitions

(1) "Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce" means the organization and its office created under O.C.G.A. § 49-10-1.

(2) "Georgia Physician Education Loan Repayment Program (GPELRP)" refers to that program of the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce authorized under O.C.G.A. § 49-10-3.(2) and O.C.G.A § 31-34-1 through O.C.G.A. § 31-34-9, which awards service cancelable financial loans to physicians who desire to practice in rural communities of Georgia.

(3) "Loans" refers to a four (4) year service repayable grant awarded by the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce to applicants who are desirous of becoming practicing physicians in rural areas of Georgia.

(4) "Loan Repayment" refers to repayment of all or a portion of recipient's outstanding medical education, and training loan debt.

(5) "Qualifying debt" is any debt held by an established lending institution, identifiable by a promissory note as origination from the debt incurred to obtain a medical education, fully disclosed at the time of application, and is currently not in default even if the creditor now considers the defaulted loan to be in good standing.

(6) "Medical Education and Training Loan Debt" refers to loans incurred by the applicant to finance his/her medical education and training that remain unpaid during the contract period.

(7) "Eligible and Qualified Applicant" is defined as a physician with outstanding medical education and training loan debt, holding a current, unrestricted license to practice medicine in the State of Georgia, who desires to serve in a Board-approved, medically underserved rural area of Georgia.

(8) "Medical School" means an institution of medical education that has received accreditation or provisional accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education of the American Medical Association (LCME) or Bureau of Professional Education of the American Osteopathic Association (AOA) for a program in medical education designed to qualify the graduate for licensure by the Georgia Composite Medical Board.

(9) "Recipient" means any person who receives any amount of funding from the Georgia Physician Education Loan Repayment Program administered by the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce.

(10) "Service Repayment" means the period of service earned by the physician, as approved by the Board, toward repayment of the service cancelable loan in professional medical services rendered by the recipient and as required under the provisions of the loan contract.

(11) "Credit" means the amount of time credited to the recipient for services rendered in compliance with the provisions of the contract. Credit is typically applied with one year of funding for each year of service rendered in compliance with the repayment provisions of the contract.

(12) "Rural and Underserved Area" means a Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce approved rural county in Georgia of 50,000 population or less according to the United States decennial census of 2010 or any future such census or at any hospital or facility operated by or under the jurisdiction of Department of Public Health or at any facility operated by or under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections or at any facility operated by or under the jurisdiction of the Department of Juvenile Justice or at any facility operated under the jurisdiction of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. Facilities falling under the jurisdiction of the mentioned state agencies must include physician employment by an approved agency or, in the case of contracted employment, the physician must be treating patients of the approved agency with equal provisions given to that agency's missions.

(13) "Board Certification" means the process of examining and certifying the qualifications of a physician or other professional by a board of specialists in the field.

(14) "Award Amount" refers to the annual amount obligated to a loan repayment recipient. The following maximum annual award amounts apply to physicians whose initial applications for participation in the program:

* Year 1 - $25,000 or 15% if the total loan balance is less than $150,000

* Year 2 - $35,000 or 20% if the total loan balance is less than $150,000

* Year 3 - $40,000 or 30% if the total loan balance is less than $150,000

* Year 4 - $50,000 or 35% if the total loan balance is less than $150,000

(15) "Approved Primary Care Specialties" refers to the priority of award consideration given to physician applicants. All specialties can apply with priority given to:

* Family Medicine/Family Practice

* General Internal Medicine

* General Pediatrics

* Obstetrics/Gynecology

* Internal Medicine-Pediatrics

* Psychiatry

* Geriatrics

* General Surgery

(16) "Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce" means that the agency of Georgia State Government, created under O.C.G.A. § 49-10-1, is responsible for monitoring Georgia's physician workforce needs and identifying areas of need by physician specialty and geographic area.

(17) "Default" means breach of contract by the recipient in failing to begin of failing to complete the contractual service obligation of the Georgia Physician Education Loan Repayment Program.

(18) "Ad Damnum or Double Damages" refers to the penalty resulting from a loan repayment recipient defaulting on their contractual obligations. Default requires immediate repayment of double the award amount for the unfulfilled service period as outlined in 195-25-.01(14) less any pro-rated amount for repaid service as provided in the contract.

(19) "Cancellation of Contract" refers to the discretionary power of the Georgia Board of Health Care Workforce to cancel any contract for cause deemed sufficient by the Board provided such authority is not exercised unreasonably or arbitrarily.

(20) "Full Time" refers to the minimum number of hours of work required per week to fulfill services obligation. Full-time is considered a minimum of 32 clinical hours, providing direct patient care during normal clinic hours at the approved practice site. The remaining hours must be spent providing inpatient care to patients and/or in practice-related administrative activities. On-call hours are not considered part of the full-time requirement. Full-time hours for an OBGYN or Family Practice physicians who practice OB are considered at least 21 of the minimum 40-hour work week must be spent providing direct patient care during normal clinic hours at the approved practice site. The remaining hours must be spent providing inpatient care to patients of the approved site and/or in practice-related administrative activities, not exceeding 8 hours per week. 40 hours per week for General Surgery is combined clinical/office hours and surgery/inpatient care with no more than 8 hours per week devoted to practice-related administrative duties. For all specialties employed under state jurisdiction, the full-time equivalent recognized by the respective state or federal agency is acceptable. No more than 7 weeks (35 workdays) per year can be spent away from the practice for vacation, holidays, continuing professional education, illness, or any other reason. Absences greater than 7 weeks in a service year will extend the service commitment.