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H H S Department of Health and Human Services
Health Resources and Services Administration
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Federal Register Notice Requiring Publication of HEAL Defaulter Names

Preamble to Federal Register Notice
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Health Resources and Services Administration
Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) Program: List of Defaulted Borrowers

AGENCY: Health Resources and Services Administration, HHS.
ACTION: Notice.
SUMMARY: The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), as required by section 709(c)(1) of the Public Health Service Act (the Act), is publishing this notice of Health Education Assistance Loan (HEAL) borrowers who have defaulted on the repayment of their HEAL loans and are excluded from the Medicare and State health care programs as of July 31, 1997. This listing also can be found on the Internet at http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/scholarshipsloans/heal/defaulters/

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Director, Division of Student Loans and Scholarships, Bureau of Health Professions, Health Resources and Services Administration, Parklawn Building, Room 9-105, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, Maryland 20857 (written requests only). All media inquiries should be directed to the HRSA Office of Communications at (301) 443-3376. Borrower-specific account information, beyond that included in the notice, will not be released to any person other than the borrower, without the written consent of the borrower.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 709(c)(1) of the Act (42 U.S.C. 292h(c)(1)) requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to compile and publish in the Federal Register a list of HEAL borrowers who have defaulted on the repayment of their HEAL loans. This list includes any borrower: (1) Whose HEAL loan has been assigned to HHS; and (2) who, as a result of HEAL default, was excluded from the Medicare and State health care programs as of July 31, 1997. The list does not include any defaulter excluded from the Medicare and State health care programs who, as of July 31, 1997, had provided HHS with satisfactory evidence that he or she had filed for bankruptcy and was making payments under a confirmed plan approved by the bankruptcy court. The list also does not include more than 1,000 defaulters who: (1) Have made satisfactory arrangements with HHS to resolve the default after being advised of their potential exclusion from the Medicare and State health care programs; or (2) as of September 19, 1997, had entered into a Settlement Agreement for repayment of the outstanding HEAL debt that had been approved by HRSA.

If extensive loan collection procedures fail to bring HEAL defaulters into repayment, HHS then is required to exclude these defaulters from receiving reimbursement under the Medicare program (42 U.S.C. 1395ccc). The Office of Inspector General imposes a parallel exclusion under section 1128(b)(14) of the Social Security Act, which requires States to exclude the defaulter from participation in all State health care programs (42 U.S.C. 1320a-7(b)(14)).

The total number of defaulters published in this list should not be compared to the number published in the Federal Register on March 15, 1995 (60 FR 14060) since the criteria used to compile the lists are different. This list does not include HEAL defaulters who are in the collection activities preceding the Medicare and State health care programs exclusion. If these defaulters do not enter into repayment, they will be added to the list.

The list that follows states: the defaulter's name, the latest known City and State of residence, the total amount of the HEAL debt, the school last attended for which a HEAL loan was received, the borrower's practice discipline, and the estimated school separation date. This information is listed by State of residence and by practice discipline.

Section 709(c)(2) of the Act directs that the information included in this notice be made available to relevant Federal agencies and to schools, school associations, professional and specialty associations, State licensing boards, hospitals with which listed borrowers may be associated, and other relevant organizations. In accordance with this section of the Act, HHS will provide to these entities, upon written request, the information included in the Federal Register notice along with Social Security Account Numbers and last known street addresses of the borrowers listed. Written requests should be submitted to the Director, Division of Student Loans and Scholarships, at the address indicated above.