42 U.S.C. § 247b–7 — Loan repayment program

(a) In general (1) Authority Subject to the limit in paragraph (2), the Secretary may enter into contracts with appropriately qualified health professionals. Under these contracts, the professionals agree to conduct prevention activities, or preparedness and response activities — including rapid response to public health emergencies and significant public health threats — as employees of the CDC and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). In exchange, the federal government agrees to repay, for each year of that service, up to $50,000 of the principal and interest on the professional's educational loans. (2) Limitation The Secretary may not make this agreement with a health professional unless that professional (A) has a substantial amount of educational loan debt compared to their income, and (B) agrees to work as an employee of the CDC or ATSDR for at least 2 years. (b) Applicability of certain provisions The rules of the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program (a separate program established elsewhere) apply to this program in the same way and to the same extent, except where they conflict with subsection (a). (c) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general Except as described in paragraph (2), Congress authorized $500,000 for fiscal year 1994, and whatever was necessary for each fiscal year from 1995 through 2002. (2) Epidemic Intelligence Service program For health professionals serving in the Epidemic Intelligence Service (authorized under section 247b–8 of this title), Congress separately authorized $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 2023. (d) Availability of appropriations Money appropriated for a fiscal year for these contracts stays available until the end of the second fiscal year after the year it was appropriated for.