site letter

Dear Site Administrator:
Thank you for your interest in the National Health Service Corps (NHSC). Enclosed please find
the NHSC Multi-Year Recruitment and Retention (R&R) Assistance Application. Every site must
complete and submit this application in order to be considered for approval as an eligible NHSC
Service Site for NHSC Scholars or individuals interested in participating in the NHSC Loan
Repayment Program (LRP).
Please read the “Instructions for Completing the NHSC Multi-Year R&R Assistance Application”
carefully before completing the application. All sites must be located in a federally-designated
Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) and meet all requirements outlined in Section 5 of
the application at the time of submission. Sites cannot apply and be approved by the NHSC if
all requirements are not currently being met. In addition, the “charges for services” requirements apply to all clinicians at the site, not only the NHSC clinicians that may serve there.
Your application will be reviewed by both NHSC staff and the State’s Primary Care Office to
determine eligibility as a NHSC Service Site. Determination of your site’s eligibility will be made
by the NHSC and you will receive written notification of the outcome of your application. Most
notifications are made within 4-weeks of application submission. Please remember that
submission of an application does not guarantee approval. In addition, approval as a NHSC
Service Site does not guarantee that clinicians you hire will be eligible to serve a NHSC
commitment at your site. They must apply and be approved for NHSC programs and approved
for service at your site.
If your site’s application is approved, you will be able to post current job opportunities on the
NHSC On-Line Opportunities List as vacancies arise. The NHSC markets the Opportunities
List, attracting hundreds of clinicians looking for health professional jobs in underserved areas,
including but not limited to NHSC Scholars and those with an interest in applying for the NHSC
LRP. To keep our list as accurate as possible, we ask that, if approved, your site agrees to
notify the NHSC regarding the status of vacancies so that we may update our on-line list.
Once approved, and as long as your site remains in a HPSA and continues to meet NHSC
requirements, your site can continue to list vacancies on the NHSC On-Line Opportunities List.
Your site does not have to reapply until the HPSA designation is updated. This usually occurs
every three years. If the area loses the HPSA designation while a NHSC clinician is serving,
that NHSC clinician will be allowed to continue service until the obligation to the NHSC is
fulfilled. However, new NHSC clinicians or those clinicians under the NHSC LRP who want to
amend their LRP contracts for an additional year of service will not be approved for service if the
HPSA is not designated.
We look forward to working with you toward improving the health of the Nation’s underserved. If
you have any questions regarding the application or application process, please contact the
NHSC at 1-800-221-9393.
Sincerely yours,

Richard J. Smith, III
Associate Administrator
Bureau of Clinician Recruitment and Service