Mental Health Professionals Loan Repayment Program

The purpose of the Mental Health Professionals Loan Repayment Program is to encourage mental health professionals to practice in a Mental Health Professional Shortage Area (MHPSA) and provide services to individuals, groups, and families to help them manage and overcome their mental health challenges.  For more details, review Title 19 of the Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Chapter 23, Subchapter D.   

To apply, first create an account by going to the Coordinating Board’s secure portal, CBPass, if you have not done so previously. Once you have created an account, click on the “Mental Health Professional Loan Repayment Program:” hyperlink. You will need:

• a copy of your current license/ certification

• your National Provider Identifier (NPI)

• information about your student loan balances, account numbers, and loan holders

• The email address for your facility’s Chief Administrative Officer (CAO). Your CAO may be a facility administrator, Director of Human Resources, or other official who is authorized to certify your employment. After you have submitted your application, we will email a service verification form to your CAO.

• Psychiatrists

• Psychologists

• Advanced Practice Nurses certified in psychiatric or mental health nursing

• Licensed Professional Counselors

• Licensed Clinical Social Workers

• Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists

• Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselors

• Specialist in School Psychology

To qualify for this program, applicants must:

• be a US citizen or a Legal Permanent Resident

• have completed at least one year of qualifying service

• provide direct mental health services to:

-Medicaid recipients;

-Texas Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees;

-Persons committed to a secure correctional facility operated by or under contract with the Texas Juvenile Justice Department;

-Persons confined in a secure correctional facility operated by or under contract with any division of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, or

-Students in a school district which is located partially or completely in a MHPSA; an open enrollment charter school located in a MHPSA; or a Title I school.

• Not be currently fulfilling another obligation to provide mental health services as part of a scholarship agreement, a student loan agreement, or another student loan repayment program

• Agree to provide three consecutive years of eligible service in a Mental Health Professional Shortage Area, eligible state hospital, or community based mental health services.

• Not be employed in a contract employee status

To find out if your site is located in a MHPSA, go to the Health Resources and Services Administration Shortage Areas search page. The site address is where you are physically working, not where the headquarters or administration office is located.

Please note: Veterans Affairs clinics and military bases are not eligible for the program as they are not open to the public and do not provide direct patient care to Medicaid and/or Texas Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) enrollees.

Participants cannot exceed the following award amounts over a three-year period:

• $160,000 – psychiatrists

• $80,000 – psychologists and licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage and family therapists who hold doctoral degrees

• $60,000 – advanced practice nurses

• $40,000 – licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, licensed specialists in school psychology, and licensed marriage and family therapists who do not hold doctoral degrees

If your verified loan balance is less than the maximum award amounts above, you will be awarded a lower amount:

• 33.33% of the original loan balance in year one

• 33.33% of the original loan balance in year two

• 33.34% of the original loan balance in year three

The following requirements apply for a loan to be eligible for repayment through the program:

• There must be a promissory note which required the loan to be used to pay for educational expenses for undergraduate, graduate, or professional education

• Must not have been made during residency or to cover costs after completion of a graduate or professional education

• Must not be in default at the time of the application submission

• Must not have an existing service obligation

• Must not be subject to repayment through another student loan repayment or loan forgiveness program or as a condition of employment

I am currently an intern/associate. Am I eligible for the program?

• If you are not fully licensed by the end of the application period, you are not eligible to apply.

I will not be licensed until after the application deadline. Am I eligible for the program?

• No. If you are not fully licensed by the end of the application period, you are not eligible.

I am currently enrolled in the program; do I have to commit to three years?

• Participants who enrolled in the program before September 1, 2023, must commit to providing five years of service. However, if you applied to the program after September 1, 2023, you must commit to three years of service at an eligible practice site. This is due to changes made during the 88^th Legislative session.

Do I have to apply each year?

• No. If you have been accepted into the program, you will be notified regarding a required end-of-service period employment verification form approximately 30 days before the end of your service period.

What if I want to change practice sites?

• Before changing practice sites, please contact our office to discuss the impact of such a change. If you wish to change practice sites, the new site must be in a MHPSA for you to continue to be eligible for the program.

Our facility does not charge patients for services. Am I eligible to apply

• Yes. If you are providing mental health services for no cost, you are fulfilling the eligibility requirements.

What is considered full-time?

• Full-time is a minimum of 32 hours per week.

I am a school counselor. Am I eligible for the program?

• To be eligible, you must be a licensed specialist in school psychology, who performs specific services within this profession for a school district and holds the appropriate credential from the appropriate state agency. The school district must be located partially or completely in a MHPSA; an open enrollment charter school located in a MHPSA, or a Title I school. Under the statutory authority for this program, professionals who are employed as contract employees are not eligible.

I am a psychiatrist; do I need to be board certified?

• No, you do not need to be board certified initially, but you must be eligible to take the board certification exam by the second year of participation and have earned certification from the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology or the American Osteopathic Board of Psychiatry and Neurology to qualify for your final year of loan repayment assistance.