Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Physical Therapist Workforce and Patient Access Act of 2017”.
Physical Therapist Workforce and Patient Access Act of 2017
A BILL
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for the participation of physical therapists in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 National Health Service Corps; participation of physical therapists in loan repayment program
Mission of corps; definition of primary health services— Section 331(a)(3)(D) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254d(a)(3)(D)) is amended by striking “or mental health,” and inserting “mental health, or physical therapy,”.
Loan repayment program— Section 338B of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 254l–1) is amended—
in subsection (a)(1), by striking “and physician assistants;” and inserting “physician assistants, and physical therapists;”; and
in subsection (b)(1)—
in subparagraph (A), by inserting before the semicolon the following: “, or have a doctoral or master's degree in physical therapy”;
in subparagraph (B), by inserting “physical therapy,” after “mental health,”; and
in subparagraph (C)(ii), by inserting “physical therapy,” after “dentistry,”.