Health professions development: loan repayment.

(1) Under existing law, the Medical Board of California licenses and regulates physicians and imposes various fees on those licensees. The Osteopathic Medical Board of California licenses and regulates osteopathic physicians and imposes various fees on those licensees. Existing law establishes the Medically Underserved Account for Physicians within the Health Professions Education Fund that is managed by the Health Professions Education Foundation and the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development. The primary purpose of the account is to fund the Steven M. Thompson Physician Corps Loan Repayment Program, which provides for the repayment of educational loans, as specified, obtained by a physician who practices in a medically underserved area of the state, as defined. Funds placed in the account for those purposes are continuously appropriated for the repayment of loans. Physicians and osteopathic physicians are eligible for the loan repayment program, and the board assesses an additional $25 license charge at the time of the initial application for licensure and license renewal for purposes of funding the loan repayment program. This bill would increase the license application and renewal charge to $50. The bill would increase the monetary limits for loan repayment, as specified, and would expand the eligibility for loan repayment funds to include those physicians providing psychiatric services. Because this bill would provide for the deposit of additional moneys in a continuously appropriated fund and would expand the purposes for which moneys in a continuously appropriated fund may be used, it would make an appropriation. (2) The Psychology Licensing Law establishes the Board of Psychology to license and regulate the practice of psychology. That law establishes a biennial license renewal fee, and, in addition, a $10 fee at the time of renewal of a license for deposit in the Mental Health Practitioner Education Fund. Moneys in that fund are available, upon appropriation, for purposes of the Licensed Mental Health Service Provider Education Program. This bill would increase that additional fee to $20. (3) The Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act, the Clinical Social Worker Practice Act, and the Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor Act make the Board of Behavioral Sciences responsible for the licensure and regulation of marriage and family therapists, clinical social workers, and professional clinical counselors, respectively. Those acts require the board to establish and assess biennial license renewal fees, as specified. The Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act and the Clinical Social Worker Practice Act also require the board to collect an additional fee of $10 at the time of license renewal and directs the deposit of these additional fees in the Mental Health Practitioner Education Fund. This bill would increase those existing additional fees under the Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Act and the Clinical Social Worker Practice Act from $10 to $20, and would amend the Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor Act to require the Board of Behavioral Sciences to collect an additional $20 fee at the time of renewal of a license for a professional clinical counselor for deposit in the fund. (4) Existing law authorizes any licensed mental health service provider, as defined, including a mental health service provider who is employed at a publicly funded mental health facility or a public or nonprofit private mental health facility that contracts with a county mental health entity or facility to provide mental health services, who provides direct patient care in a publicly funded facility or a mental health professional shortage area to apply for grants under the Licensed Mental Health Service Provider Education Program to reimburse his or her educational loans related to a career as a licensed mental health service provider, as provided. This bill would add licensed professional clinical counselors to those licensed mental health service providers eligible for grants to reimburse educational loans. This bill would also delete obsolete provisions. (5) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.