S 5339 NY

0likes☆Favorite🔕SubscribeShare

Passed One Chamber

Skip to main content

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie

--> --> -->

Assembly Members

Legislative Info

Public Hearings

Speaker's Press

Assembly Reports

Committees & More

Bill Search Home Laws Legislative Calendar Public Hearing Schedule Assembly Calendars Assembly Committee Agenda Javascript must be enabled to properly view this page.

Bill No.: Summary Actions Committee&nbspVotes Floor&nbspVotes Memo Text LFIN Chamber&nbspVideo/Transcript S05339 Summary: BILL NO S05339A &nbsp SAME AS SAME AS A02339-A

&nbsp SPONSOR FAHY &nbsp COSPNSR &nbsp MLTSPNSR &nbsp Amd §2807-m, Pub Health L &nbsp Provides for dentist loan repayment and practice support for dentists who agree to practice in an underserved area in the state.

Go to top S05339 Text:

STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

5339--A

2025-2026 Regular Sessions

IN SENATE

February 20, 2025 ___________

Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Health -- recommitted to the Committee on Health in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to providing for dentist loan repayment and practice support

The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows:

1 Section 1. Subdivision 5-a of section 2807-m of the public health law 2 is amended by adding two new paragraphs (c-1) and (d-1) to read as 3 follows: 4 (c-1) Dentist loan repayment program. Up to one million two hundred 5 thousand dollars each state fiscal year for the next three fiscal years 6 beginning on or after the effective date of this paragraph shall be set 7 aside and reserved by the commissioner from the regional pools estab- 8 lished pursuant to subdivision two of this section and shall be avail- 9 able for purposes of dentist loan repayment in accordance with subdivi- 10 sion ten-a of this section. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of 11 this section, sections one hundred twelve and one hundred sixty-three of 12 the state finance law, or any other contrary provision of law, such 13 funding shall be allocated regionally with one-third of available funds 14 going to New York city and two-thirds of available funds going to the 15 rest of the state and shall be distributed in a manner to be determined 16 by the commissioner without a competitive bid or request for proposal 17 process as follows: 18 (i) Funding shall first be awarded to repay loans of up to eight 19 dentists who train in general or pediatric dentistry in teaching general 20 hospitals, including in community clinic settings owned by or affiliated 21 with such hospitals, and who enter and remain in general or pediatric

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD05960-04-6

S. 5339--A 2

1 dentistry practices in underserved communities, as determined by the 2 commissioner. 3 (ii) After distributions in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this 4 paragraph, all remaining funds shall be awarded to repay loans of 5 dentists who enter and remain in general or pediatric dentistry prac- 6 tices in underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner, 7 including but not limited to dentists working in general hospitals, 8 other health care facilities or qualified private practices. 9 (iii) In no case shall less than fifty percent of the funds available 10 pursuant to this paragraph be distributed in accordance with subpara- 11 graphs (i) and (ii) of this paragraph to dentists identified by general 12 hospitals. 13 (d-1) Dentist practice support. Up to three million dollars for each 14 fiscal year for the next three fiscal years beginning on or after the 15 effective date of this paragraph shall be set aside and reserved by the 16 commissioner from the regional pools established pursuant to subdivision 17 two of this section and shall be available for purposes of dentist prac- 18 tice support. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of this section, 19 sections one hundred twelve and one hundred sixty-three of the state 20 finance law, or any other contrary provision of law, such funding shall 21 be allocated regionally with one-third of available funds going to New 22 York city and two-thirds of available funds going to the rest of the 23 state and shall be distributed in a manner to be determined by the 24 commissioner without a competitive bid or request for proposal process 25 as follows: 26 (i) Preference in funding eight awards, to support costs incurred by 27 dentists trained in general or pediatric dentistry in teaching general 28 hospitals, including in community clinic settings owned by or affiliated 29 with such hospitals, who thereafter establish or join practices in 30 underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner. 31 (ii) After distributions in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this 32 paragraph, all remaining funds shall be awarded to dentists to support 33 the cost of establishing or joining practices in underserved communi- 34 ties, as determined by the commissioner, and to hospitals and other 35 health care providers to recruit new dentists to provide services in 36 underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner. 37 (iii) In no case shall less than fifty percent of the funds available 38 pursuant to this paragraph be distributed to general hospitals in 39 accordance with subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of this paragraph. 40 § 2. Section 2807-m of the public health law is amended by adding two 41 new subdivisions 10-a and 13 to read as follows: 42 10-a. Dentist loan repayment program. (a) Beginning upon the start of 43 the next fiscal year beginning on or after the effective date of this 44 subdivision, the commissioner is authorized, within amounts available 45 pursuant to subdivision five-a of this section, to make loan repayment 46 awards to general or pediatric dentists or other dentistry specialties 47 determined by the commissioner to be in short supply, licensed to prac- 48 tice dentistry in New York state, who agree to practice for at least 49 three years in an underserved area, as determined by the commissioner. 50 (b) Loan repayment awards made to a dentist pursuant to paragraph (a) 51 of this subdivision shall not exceed the total qualifying outstanding 52 debt of the dentist from student loans to cover tuition and other 53 related educational expenses, made by or guaranteed by the federal or 54 state government, or made by a lending or educational institution 55 approved under title IV of the federal higher education act. Loan 56 repayment awards shall be used solely to repay such outstanding debt.

S. 5339--A 3

1 (c) In the event that a three-year commitment pursuant to the agree- 2 ment referenced in paragraph (a) of this subdivision is not fulfilled, 3 the recipient shall be responsible for repayment in amounts which shall 4 be calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in subdivision 5 (b) of section two hundred fifty-four-o of title forty-two of the United 6 States Code, as amended. 7 (d) The commissioner is authorized to apply any funds available for 8 purposes of paragraph (a) of this subdivision for use as matching funds 9 for federal grants for the purpose of assisting states in operating loan 10 repayment programs pursuant to section three hundred thirty-eight I of 11 the public health service act. 12 (e) The commissioner may postpone, change or waive the service obli- 13 gation and repayment amounts set forth in paragraphs (a) and (c), 14 respectively of this subdivision in individual circumstances where there 15 is compelling need or hardship. 16 (f) (i) When a dentist is not actually practicing in an underserved 17 area, such dentist shall be deemed to be practicing in an underserved 18 area if such dentist practices in a facility or dentist's office that 19 primarily serves an underserved population as determined by the commis- 20 sioner, without regard to whether the population or the facility or 21 dentist's office is located in an underserved area. 22 (ii) In making criteria and determinations as to whether an area is an 23 underserved area or whether a facility or dentist's office primarily 24 serves an underserved population, the commissioner may make separate 25 criteria and determinations for different specialties. 26 13. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, applications 27 submitted for the dentist loan repayment program pursuant to paragraph 28 (c-1) of subdivision five-a of this section and subdivision ten-a of 29 this section or the dentist practice support program pursuant to para- 30 graph (d-1) of subdivision five-a of this section, shall be subject to 31 the following: 32 (a) Awards shall be made from the total funding available for new 33 awards under the dentist loan repayment program and the dentist practice 34 support program, with neither program limited to a specific funding 35 amount within such total funding available; 36 (b) An applicant may apply for an award for either dentist loan repay- 37 ment or dentist practice support, but not both; 38 (c) An applicant shall either: (i) agree to practice for three years 39 in an underserved area and each award shall provide up to fifty thousand 40 dollars for each of the three years; or (ii) agree to practice as a 41 dentist engaged in private practice in an underserved area and each 42 award shall provide up to seventy thousand dollars for each of the three 43 years; and 44 (d) To the extent practicable, awards shall be timed to be of use for 45 job offers made to applicants. 46 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to 47 have been in full force and effect on and after the start of the next 48 fiscal year beginning on or after such effective date.

Go to top

Sitemap

Request Information

Directions and Maps