§ 68.1 What are the scope and purpose of the NIH LRPs?

The regulations of this part apply to the award of educational loan payments authorized by sections 487A and 487B of the Public Health Service Act, as amended (42 U.S.C. 288-1, 42 U.S.C. 288-2). The purpose of these programs is to address the need for biomedical and behavioral researchers by providing an economic incentive to appropriately qualified health professionals who are engaged in qualifying research supported by domestic nonprofit funding or as employees of NIH. The NIH Loan Repayment Programs include two separate programs, the Intramural Loan Repayment Program (for NIH researchers) and the Extramural Loan Repayment Program (for non-NIH researchers). (a) The Intramural LRP includes subcategories that focus on: (1) General research, including a program for Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) Fellows; (2) Research on acquired immune deficiency syndrome; (3) Clinical research conducted by appropriately qualified health professionals who are from disadvantaged backgrounds; and (4) An area of emerging scientific or workforce need. (b) The Extramural LRP includes subcategories that focus on: (1) Contraception or infertility research; (2) Pediatric research, including pediatric pharmacological research; (3) Minority health disparities research; (4) Clinical research; (5) Clinical research conducted by health professionals from disadvantaged backgrounds; and (6) Research in emerging areas critical to human health.