,,ii #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bddc ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #i1 #bjai ,mr4 ,reed 7for himself and ,mr4 ,cassidy7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to amend the ,public ,health ,service ,act to provide for investment in tomorrow's pediatric health care workforce4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,investment in ,tomorrow's ,pediatric ,health ,care ,workforce ,act4 #b4 ,investment in tomorrow's pediatric health care workforce ,section #gge of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bie;f7 is amended to read as follows3 #gge4 ,investment in tomorrow's pediatric health care workforce 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall establish and carry out a program of entering into pediatric specialty loan repayment agreements with qualified health professionals under which-- 7#a7 the qualified health professional agrees to a period of not less than #b years of obligated service during which the professional will-- 7,a7 participate in an accredited pediatric medical subspecialty1 pediatric surgical specialty1 child and adolescent psychiatry subspecialty1 or child and adolescent mental and behavioral health residency or fellowship2 or 7,b7 be employed full-time in providing pediatric medical subspecialty care1 pediatric surgical specialty care1 child and adolescent psychiatry subspecialty care1 or child and adolescent mental and behavioral health care1 including substance use disorder prevention and treatment services1 in an area with-- 7i7 a shortage of health care professionals practicing in the pediatric medical subspecialty1 the pediatric surgical specialty1 the child and adolescent psychiatry subspecialty1 or child and adolescent mental and behavioral health1 as applicable2 and 7ii7 a sufficient pediatric population1 as determined by the ,secretary1 to support the addition of a practitioner in the pediatric medical subspecialty1 the pediatric surgical specialty1 the child and adolescent psychiatry subspecialty1 or child and adolescent mental and behavioral health1 as applicable2 and 7#b7 the ,secretary agrees to make payments on the principal and interest of undergraduate1 graduate1 or graduate medical education loans of the qualified health professional of not more than #ce1jjj a year for each year of agreed upon service under paragraph 7#a7 for a period of not more than #c years4 7b7 ,eligibility requirements 7#a7 ,pediatric medical specialists and pediatric surgical specialists ,for purposes of loan repayment agreements under this section with respect to pediatric medical subspecialty and pediatric surgical specialty practitioners1 the term qualified health professional means a licensed physician who-- 7,a7 is entering or receiving training in an accredited pediatric medical subspecialty or pediatric surgical subspecialty residency or fellowship2 or 7,b7 has completed 7but not prior to the end of the calendar year in which the ,investment in ,tomorrow's ,pediatric ,health ,care ,workforce ,act is enacted7 the training described in subparagraph 7,a74 7#b7 ,child and adolescent psychiatry and mental and behavioral health ,for purposes of loan repayment agreements under this section with respect to child and adolescent mental and behavioral health care1 the term qualified health professional means a health care professional who-- 7,a7 has received specialized training or clinical experience in child and adolescent mental health in psychiatry1 psychology1 school psychology1 or psychiatric nursing2 7,b7 has a license or certification in a ,state to practice allopathic medicine1 osteopathic medicine1 psychology1 school psychology1 or psychiatric nursing2 or 7,c7 is a mental health service professional who has completed 7but not before the end of the calendar year in which the ,investment in ,tomorrow's ,pediatric ,health ,care ,workforce ,act is enacted7 specialized training or clinical experience in child and adolescent mental health described in subparagraph 7,a74 7#c7 ,additional eligibility requirements ,the ,secretary may not enter into a loan repayment agreement under this section with a qualified health professional unless-- 7,a7 the professional agrees to work in1 or for a provider serving1 an area or community with a shortage of eligible qualified health professionals 7as defined in paragraphs 7#a7 and 7#b772 7,b7 the professional is a ,united ,states citizen1 a permanent legal ,united ,states resident1 or lawfully present in the ,united ,states2 and 7,c7 if the professional is enrolled in a graduate program1 the program is accredited1 and the professional has an acceptable level of academic standing 7as determined by the ,secretary74 7c7 ,priority ,in entering into loan repayment agreements under this section1 the ,secretary shall give priority to applicants who-- 7#a7 have familiarity with evidence-based methods and cultural and linguistic competence in health care services2 and 7#b7 demonstrate financial need4 7d7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years #bjbj through #bjbd-- 7#a7 #cj1jjj1jjj to carry out this section with respect to loan repayment agreements with qualified health professionals described in subsection 7b77#a72 and 7#b7 #bj1jjj1jjj to carry out this section with respect to loan repayment agreements with respect to qualified health professionals described in subsection 7b77#b74 4