A First Look at the VA MISSION Act Veteran Health Administration Medical School Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs.

Abstract

Background The US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is challenged by physician staffing shortages. The 2018 VA MISSION ACT authorized 2 scholarship and loan repayment programs. The Health Professions Scholarship Program (HPSP) created scholarships for physicians and dentists. The Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP) increased the maximum debt reduction. The Specialty Education Loan Repayment Program (SELRP) authorized the repayment of educational loans for physicians in specialties deemed necessary for VA. The Veterans Healing Veterans (VHV) program was a 1-year pilot program specifically for veteran medical students. Observations For academic years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022, HPSP offered 54 scholarships with 51 accepted. In 2020, the VHV program offered 22 scholarships with 12 accepted by recipients at all 5 Teague-Cranston medical schools and 4 Historically Black Colleges and Universities. For SELRP, 14 applicants have been approved in family medicine, internal medicine, emergency medicine, and geriatrics. The average loan repayment is anticipated to be $110,000, which equates to 38.5 VA service years for the 14 applicants. Since 2018, 1546 physicians received EDRP awards with amounts increased from an average of $96,090 in 2018 to $148,302 in 2020. Conclusions The VA MISSION Act's scholarship and loan repayment programs provide VA with several ways to address physician workforce shortages. Ultimately, the success of the program will be determined by the recruitment of scholarship recipients to VA careers.