Loan terms

Primary Care Loan

Eligibility requirements for PCL are the same as for HPSL except that a recipient must commit to a three-year primary care residency and must practice as a primary care physician until the loan is repaid in full. If you fail to fulfill this obligation, you must repay your PCL loan at the rates given below, computed from the date of defaulting on the service obligation. You may borrow an annual maximum loan amount of your cost of attendance. Interest and repayment provisions are identical to the HPSL program.

If you leave your primary care field, the interest rate and repayment will change as follows:

  • Loans awarded prior to November 13, 1998 — The interest rate is changed to 12 percent, with you, the borrower, billed for the added interest from the original date of disbursement. The monthly payments will increase so the loan will be repaid within the original scheduled time period.

  • Loans awarded since November 13, 1998 — The interest rate is changed to 18 percent interest, from the time of the change in your status. The monthly payments will increase so the loan will be repaid within the original scheduled time period.

  • The grace period is lost and repayment begins immediately. However, if you have not yet completed your studies, these provisions will not take affect until the date of graduation or cessation of studies. At that point the above adjustments are made and repayment begins. If you wish to avoid the increased interest, you must repay your loan in full, prior to graduation/cessation of studies.