BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON
BUSINESS, PROFESSIONS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Senator Jerry Hill, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 2485 Hearing Date: June 27,
2016
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|Author: |Santiago |
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|Version: |May 27, 2016 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
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|Consultant|Sarah Huchel |
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Subject: Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program
SUMMARY: Revises terms of qualification and disbursement for the Dental
Board of California's (Board) Dental Corps Loan Repayment
Program (Program).
Existing law:
1)Establishes the Board within the Department of Consumer
Affairs (DCA) to license and regulate the practice of
dentistry. (Business and Professions Code (BPC) §§ 1601.1,
1611)
2)Establishes the Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program of 2002
(Program) in the Board. (BPC § 1970)
3)Requires a Program applicant to have a current, valid license
to practice dentistry. (BPC § 1972 (a))
4)Establishes loan repayment as follows: (BPC § 1975)
a) After a Program participant has completed one year of
providing services as a dentist in a dentally underserved
area, the Board shall provide up to twenty-five thousand
dollars ($25,000) for loan repayment.
b) After a Program participant has completed two
consecutive years of providing services as a dentist in a
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dentally underserved area, the Board shall provide up to an
additional thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000) of loan
repayment, for a total loan repayment of up to sixty
thousand dollars ($60,000).
c) After a Program participant has completed three
consecutive years of providing services as a dentist in a
dentally underserved area, the Board shall provide up to a
maximum of an additional forty-five thousand dollars
($45,000) of loan repayment, for a total loan repayment of
up to one hundred five thousand dollars ($105,000).
This bill:
1)States Legislative intent that the changes made by this bill
are comprehensive, and that regulations do not need to be
promulgated by the Dental Board of California to implement the
changes made by this act.
2)Renames the California Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program of
2002 the California Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program.
3)Requires a Program applicant to possess a current, valid
license to practice dentistry in California within the five
years immediately prior to application for the Program, or be
currently eligible for graduation from a predoctoral or
postdoctoral dental education Program approved by the
Commission on Dental Accreditation or the Board and meet all
criteria for licensure, subject to successful completion of
applicable education and examination requirements.
4)Requires an applicant to submit documentation detailing
current loan obligations from any government or commercial
lender obtained for purposes of financing tuition or fees at a
dental school approved by the Commission on Dental
Accreditation or the Board. Documentation shall contain the
applicant's account number and the lender's contact
information, as well as current balance owing and monthly
installment plan details, if applicable.
5)Requires an applicant to disclose any and all obligations for
which the applicant has defaulted or been subject to a
judgment lien within the last ten years, and explanations for
each default or judgment lien disclosed.
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6)Requires an applicant, if selected, to sign an agreement with
the Board, under penalty of perjury, to maintain qualified
employment for 36 months continuously, and that the qualified
employment meets or will meet the minimum requirements of the
Program regarding practice setting, clinical hours worked, and
population served.
7)Requires an applicant to agree to provide an annual progress
report, signed under penalty of perjury by both the applicant
and employer or employer's designee. A progress report shall
verify the practice setting's qualified status, clinical hours
worked by the applicant, number of patients treated, specific
treatment rendered and its value, and patient's payer source.
8)Requires the Board, in selecting a participant for the
Program, to give priority consideration to an applicant who is
best suited to meet the cultural and linguistic needs and
demands of dentally underserved populations by demonstrating
experience in one or more of the following areas:
a) Speaks one or more Medi-Cal threshold languages.
b) Comes from an economically disadvantaged background with
economic, social, or other circumstances.
c) Has worked in a health field in an underserved area or
with an underserved population.
d) Is a dentist specialist recognized by the American
Dental Association or has met all eligibility requirements
to graduate from a dental specialty residency Program
approved by the Commission on Dental Accreditation.
e) Has completed an extramural Program or rotation during
dental school or postgraduate education in which the
applicant provided services to a population that speaks any
Medi-Cal threshold language.
9)Requires the practice setting to meet one or both of the
following criteria:
a) The practice setting shall be located in a dentally
underserved area.
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b) The practice setting shall ensure that the Program
participant serves a patient population that consists of at
least 50 percent dentally underserved populations.
10)Requires a Program applicant to be working in, or have a
signed agreement for future employment with, an eligible
practice setting. The Program participant shall be employed
on a full-time basis. "Full-time basis" means 30 hours of
clinical hands-on care per week, for no less than 45 weeks per
year, except as provided for during customary holidays,
personal or family illness, and vacation time as described in
a separate employment agreement between the recipient and the
practice setting. Upon 30-day notice to the Board, the Board
shall grant an extended leave of absence period for serious
illness, pregnancy, or other natural cause. The Board may
establish other exemptions to the minimum time requirements of
this subdivision on a case-by-case basis.
11)Requires a Program participant to commit to a minimum of
three years of service in one or more eligible practice
settings. Loan repayment shall be deferred until the dentist
is employed on a full-time basis.
12)Authorizes the Board to coordinate with local and statewide
trade and professional dental organizations, as well as
educational institutions, for outreach to potentially eligible
applicants.
13)Authorizes the Board to terminate the applicant's
participation in the Program for cause. Cause for termination
shall include the following:
a) Recipient's termination of full-time, qualified
employment.
b) Recipient's failure to maintain his or her professional
license in good standing.
c) Recipient's failure to comply with any other term or
condition of this article.
14)States that, if the Board terminates a recipient's
participation for cause at any time during the 36-month period
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of the Program, the Board may require the recipient to repay
the total amount of loans or grants disbursed in their name
plus ten percent interest within maximum period of seven
years.
15)Adjusts the timing of loan repayment to allow an initial
disbursement of funds to be made within 30 days from execution
of a Program agreement between the Board and the recipient
directly from the Board to the qualified lender selected by
the recipient, to be credited to the recipient's account.
States that subsequent disbursements in sums equal to the
initial disbursement, but not equaling more than the total
amount owed by the recipient, shall be made within 30 days of
months 13 and 25 of the recipient's participation in the
Program.
16)Requires the Board to report to the Legislature on the
Program during its sunset review period.
17) Makes technical amendments.
FISCAL
EFFECT: Unknown. This bill is keyed "fiscal" by the
Legislative Counsel. The Assembly Appropriations Committee
analyzed this bill in a different form.
COMMENTS:
1. Purpose. This bill is sponsored by the California Dental
Association . According to the Author's office, this bill is
necessary to "codify existing regulations for the
implementation of the Program; expand pool of applicants
eligible for the Dental Corps Loan Repayment Program; revise
the timeline for loan distribution; remove deterrents that
keep away potential applicants; and, require the DBC to
report on the effectiveness of the Program at the time of its
sunset review."
2. The Program. AB 982 (Firebaugh, Chapter 1131, Statutes of
2002) established the original California Dental Corps Loan
Repayment Program. The Program, administered by the Board, is
designed to assist dentists who practice in dentally
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underserved areas by repaying dental school loans up to
$105,000. A total of three million dollars was initially
authorized to expend from the State Dentistry Fund for this
Program.
SB 540 (Price, Chapter 385, Statutes of 2011) extended the
Program until all the money is expended. However, the Board
has awarded funds to only 19 participants in five years.
Approximately $1.63 million is left in the account.
The Board indicates that it promotes the Program through the
Board's website and presents information to California dental
students, as well as partners with stakeholders and
professional associations to increase awareness.
Concerns about the unspent funds were raised in the Board's
2014 Sunset Review.
The Board reported that its Access to Care Committee was in
the process of exploring why applications have dropped off
and whether the Board's requirements are more restrictive
than those of other organizations having success with similar
loan repayment programs.
This bill keeps largely the same parameters as those required
in the prior Program, as well as integrates some existing
regulations. The major changes allow individuals who are
still in school to apply, changes language requiring certain
criteria to instead "give priority" to those individuals who
meet them, and change the repayment program.
3. Previous Legislation. SB 540 (Price, Chapter 385, Statutes
of 201)1 extended the Program until all monies are expended.
SB 599 (Negrete-McLeod, Chapter 642, Statutes of 2009)
extended the sunset date of the Program to 2012.
AB 982 (Firebaugh, Chapter 1131, Statutes of 2002) created
the Program to be administered by the DBC.
4. Arguments in Support. The California Dental Association
(CDA) writes, "The legislature recognized the importance of
growing the dental workforce in 2002 when it passed Assembly
Bill 982 by Assemblymember Marco Firebaugh and allocated
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funds to student loan debt repayment for dentists who would
commit to providing at least three years of service to the
state's most needy and most vulnerable populations. Those
populations have only grown since then, and it is still a
challenge to find dental providers to serve them. Despite
this, the state still has over a million and a half dollars
left in the loan repayment grant fund with no recent
applicants to receive it.
"The lack of program participants stems from extensive and
burdensome qualification requirements, and a general lack of
awareness of the program's existence. AB 2485 will ?remove some
unnecessary and burdensome provisions of the program that have
been serving as a deterrent to qualified and willing potential
applicants.
"CDA believes these revisions to the program will enable
qualified and willing dentists to serve the state's most
vulnerable populations and most effectively utilize the funds
dedicated by the legislature so many years ago."
SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:
Support:
California Dental Association (Sponsor)
Opposition:
None on file as of June 21, 2016.
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