California Medical School Tuition for Medical Service Pilot Program.

Existing law establishes the Student Aid Commission as the primary state agency for the administration of state-authorized student financial aid programs available to students attending all segments of postsecondary education. Existing law expresses the intent of the Legislature to review, during the annual budget process, the distribution of University of California medical school graduates with regard to placement in areas, and service to populations, underserved by the medical profession, as specified. This bill would establish the California Medical School Tuition for Medical Service Pilot Program under the administration of the Student Aid Commission. The bill would provide financial aid to certain students to support their undergraduate, medical school, and graduate medical educations. The bill would require these students to commit to practicing for a specified period of time in primary care or a high-needs specialty in California in medically underserved populations and areas. The bill would require the commission to begin implementing the pilot program during the 2023–24 academic year, including by developing program eligibility, outreach, and monitoring criteria. The bill would, among other things, require the commission to develop eligibility criteria, including by prioritizing students who are underrepresented in medicine based on race, ethnicity, and language. The bill would establish the Medical School Tuition for Medical Service Pilot Program Scholarship Fund in the State Treasury. The bill would authorize the commission to enter into certain contracts related to the pilot program with nonprofit entities headquartered in California, as specified. The bill would, regarding certain aspects of the pilot program, prohibit an exercise of discretion by the commission and its contractors from being subject to judicial review, except as specified. The bill would make its provisions operative only upon the appropriation of funds for purposes of the pilot program by the Legislature in the annual Budget Act or in another statute.