STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5339
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
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 period April first, two
6 thousand twenty-five through March thirty-first, two thousand twenty-
7 eight, shall be set aside and reserved by the commissioner from the
8 regional pools established pursuant to subdivision two of this section
9 and shall be available for purposes of dentist loan repayment in accord-
10 ance with subdivision ten-a of this section. Notwithstanding any
11 contrary provision of this section, sections one hundred twelve and one
12 hundred sixty-three of the state finance law, or any other contrary
13 provision of law, such funding shall be allocated regionally with one-
14 third of available funds going to New York city and two-thirds of avail-
15 able funds going to the rest of the state and shall be distributed in a
16 manner to be determined by the commissioner without a competitive bid or
17 request for proposal 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
22 dentistry practices in underserved communities, as determined by the
23 commissioner.
24 (ii) After distributions in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this
25 paragraph, all remaining funds shall be awarded to repay loans of
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05960-01-5
S. 5339 2
1 dentists who enter and remain in general or pediatric dentistry prac-
2 tices in underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner,
3 including but not limited to dentists working in general hospitals,
4 other health care facilities or qualified private practices.
5 (iii) In no case shall less than fifty percent of the funds available
6 pursuant to this paragraph be distributed in accordance with subpara-
7 graphs (i) and (ii) of this paragraph to dentists identified by general
8 hospitals.
9 (d-1) Dentist practice support. Up to three million dollars for each
10 fiscal year for the period April first, two thousand twenty-five through
11 March thirty-first, two thousand twenty-eight, shall be set aside and
12 reserved by the commissioner from the regional pools established pursu-
13 ant to subdivision two of this section and shall be available for
14 purposes of dentist practice support. Notwithstanding any contrary
15 provision of this section, sections one hundred twelve and one hundred
16 sixty-three of the state finance law, or any other contrary provision of
17 law, such funding shall be allocated regionally with one-third of avail-
18 able funds going to New York city and two-thirds of available funds
19 going to the rest of the state and shall be distributed in a manner to
20 be determined by the commissioner without a competitive bid or request
21 for proposal process as follows:
22 (i) Preference in funding eight awards, to support costs incurred by
23 dentists trained in general or pediatric dentistry in teaching general
24 hospitals, including in community clinic settings owned by or affiliated
25 with such hospitals, who thereafter establish or join practices in
26 underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner.
27 (ii) After distributions in accordance with subparagraph (i) of this
28 paragraph, all remaining funds shall be awarded to dentists to support
29 the cost of establishing or joining practices in underserved communi-
30 ties, as determined by the commissioner, and to hospitals and other
31 health care providers to recruit new dentists to provide services in
32 underserved communities, as determined by the commissioner.
33 (iii) In no case shall less than fifty percent of the funds available
34 pursuant to this paragraph be distributed to general hospitals in
35 accordance with subparagraphs (i) and (ii) of this paragraph.
36 § 2. Section 2807-m of the public health law is amended by adding two
37 new subdivisions 10-a and 13 to read as follows:
38 10-a. Dentist loan repayment program. (a) Beginning April first, two
39 thousand twenty-five, the commissioner is authorized, within amounts
40 available pursuant to subdivision five-a of this section, to make loan
41 repayment awards to general or pediatric dentists or other dentistry
42 specialties determined by the commissioner to be in short supply,
43 licensed to practice dentistry in New York state, who agree to practice
44 for at least three years in an underserved area, as determined by the
45 commissioner.
46 (b) Loan repayment awards made to a dentist pursuant to paragraph (a)
47 of this subdivision shall not exceed the total qualifying outstanding
48 debt of the dentist from student loans to cover tuition and other
49 related educational expenses, made by or guaranteed by the federal or
50 state government, or made by a lending or educational institution
51 approved under title IV of the federal higher education act. Loan
52 repayment awards shall be used solely to repay such outstanding debt.
53 (c) In the event that a three-year commitment pursuant to the agree-
54 ment referenced in paragraph (a) of this subdivision is not fulfilled,
55 the recipient shall be responsible for repayment in amounts which shall
56 be calculated in accordance with the formula set forth in subdivision
S. 5339 3
1 (b) of section two hundred fifty-four-o of title forty-two of the United
2 States Code, as amended.
3 (d) The commissioner is authorized to apply any funds available for
4 purposes of paragraph (a) of this subdivision for use as matching funds
5 for federal grants for the purpose of assisting states in operating loan
6 repayment programs pursuant to section three hundred thirty-eight I of
7 the public health service act.
8 (e) The commissioner may postpone, change or waive the service obli-
9 gation and repayment amounts set forth in paragraphs (a) and (c),
10 respectively of this subdivision in individual circumstances where there
11 is compelling need or hardship.
12 (f) (i) When a dentist is not actually practicing in an underserved
13 area, such dentist shall be deemed to be practicing in an underserved
14 area if such dentist practices in a facility or dentist's office that
15 primarily serves an underserved population as determined by the commis-
16 sioner, without regard to whether the population or the facility or
17 dentist's office is located in an underserved area.
18 (ii) In making criteria and determinations as to whether an area is an
19 underserved area or whether a facility or dentist's office primarily
20 serves an underserved population, the commissioner may make separate
21 criteria and determinations for different specialties.
22 13. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, applications
23 submitted for the dentist loan repayment program pursuant to paragraph
24 (c-1) of subdivision five-a of this section and subdivision ten-a of
25 this section or the dentist practice support program pursuant to para-
26 graph (d-1) of subdivision five-a of this section, shall be subject to
27 the following:
28 (a) Awards shall be made from the total funding available for new
29 awards under the dentist loan repayment program and the dentist practice
30 support program, with neither program limited to a specific funding
31 amount within such total funding available;
32 (b) An applicant may apply for an award for either dentist loan repay-
33 ment or dentist practice support, but not both;
34 (c) An applicant shall either: (i) agree to practice for three years
35 in an underserved area and each award shall provide up to fifty thousand
36 dollars for each of the three years; or (ii) agree to practice as a
37 dentist engaged in private practice in an underserved area and each
38 award shall provide up to seventy thousand dollars for each of the three
39 years; and
40 (d) To the extent practicable, awards shall be timed to be of use for
41 job offers made to applicants.
42 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to
43 have been in full force and effect on and after April 1, 2025.
