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| 1 | AN ACT concerning education. | ||||||
| 2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
| 3 | represented in the General Assembly: | ||||||
| 4 | Section 5. The Community Behavioral Health Care | ||||||
| 5 | Professional Loan Repayment Program Act is amended by changing | ||||||
| 6 | Sections 10 and 30 as follows: | ||||||
| 7 | (110 ILCS 996/10) | ||||||
| 8 | Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act: | ||||||
| 9 | "Behavioral health professional" means a professional | ||||||
| 10 | engaged in the delivery of behavioral health, mental health, | ||||||
| 11 | or substance use disorder treatment or services. | ||||||
| 12 | "Commission" means the Illinois Student Assistance | ||||||
| 13 | Commission. | ||||||
| 14 | "Physician" means a person licensed by this State to | ||||||
| 15 | practice medicine in all its branches and includes any person | ||||||
| 16 | holding a temporary license, as provided in the Medical | ||||||
| 17 | Practice Act of 1987. | ||||||
| 18 | "Program" means the Community Behavioral Health Care | ||||||
| 19 | Professional Loan Repayment Program. | ||||||
| 20 | "Psychiatrist" or "licensed psychiatrist" means a | ||||||
| 21 | physician who has successfully completed a residency program | ||||||
| 22 | in psychiatry accredited by either the Accreditation Council | ||||||
| 23 | for Graduate Medical Education or the American Osteopathic | ||||||
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| 1 | Association. | ||||||
| 2 | (Source: P.A. 100-862, eff. 1-1-19.) | ||||||
| 3 | (110 ILCS 996/30) | ||||||
| 4 | Sec. 30. Eligibility; work requirement. | ||||||
| 5 | (a) To be eligible for assistance under the Community | ||||||
| 6 | Behavioral Health Care Professional Loan Repayment Program, | ||||||
| 7 | the Commission must find that the applicant satisfies all of | ||||||
| 8 | the following: | ||||||
| 9 | (1) He or she is a United States citizen or an eligible | ||||||
| 10 | noncitizen. | ||||||
| 11 | (2) He or she is a resident of this State. | ||||||
| 12 | (3) At the time of application, he He or she is | ||||||
| 13 | currently working has worked for at least 12 consecutive | ||||||
| 14 | months as a behavioral health professional in a community | ||||||
| 15 | mental health center, behavioral health clinic, substance | ||||||
| 16 | use treatment center, or State-operated psychiatric | ||||||
| 17 | hospital licensed or certified by the Department of Human | ||||||
| 18 | Services or the Department of Healthcare and Family | ||||||
| 19 | Services in an underserved or rural federally designated | ||||||
| 20 | Mental Health Professional Shortage Area in this State. | ||||||
| 21 | (4) He or she is a borrower with an outstanding | ||||||
| 22 | balance due on an educational loan. | ||||||
| 23 | (5) He or she has not defaulted on an educational | ||||||
| 24 | loan. | ||||||
| 25 | (b) The Commission may grant preference to a previous | ||||||
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| 1 | recipient of a grant under the Program, provided that the | ||||||
| 2 | recipient continues to meet the eligibility requirements under | ||||||
| 3 | this Section. | ||||||
| 4 | (c) A recipient of a grant under the Program must complete | ||||||
| 5 | a separate 12-month period working in a community mental | ||||||
| 6 | health center in an underserved or rural federally designated | ||||||
| 7 | Mental Health Professional Shortage Area in this State | ||||||
| 8 | following his or her initial application for this grant. An | ||||||
| 9 | applicant seeking a renewal award in a subsequent year must be | ||||||
| 10 | employed by a facility identified in paragraph (3) of | ||||||
| 11 | subsection (a) at the time of application and must provide | ||||||
| 12 | evidence of continuous employment for the 12 months that | ||||||
| 13 | precede the application for renewal for each grant that he or | ||||||
| 14 | she is awarded. | ||||||
| 15 | (Source: P.A. 103-56, eff. 7-1-24.) | ||||||
| 16 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, | ||||||
| 17 | 2026. | ||||||