Opportunity Overview
The Georgia Department of Community Health State Office of Rural Health has opened the 2026 Georgia State Loan Repayment Program (GA SORH SLRP). The program repays qualifying educational loans for eligible clinicians who provide direct patient care at approved Georgia practice sites in federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas.
2026 Application Status
The official DCH program page states that the 2026 application cycle opened August 1, 2026 and currently directs eligible providers to apply. The controlling public page does not publish a fixed closing date or deadline time, so applicants should apply promptly and confirm current availability directly with the State Office of Rural Health.
Award Amount
Current program guidance provides awards of up to $50,000 per year in federal funds for full-time participants and up to $25,000 per year for half-time participants. Funds must be used to repay qualifying educational loans.
Eligible Clinicians
Eligible disciplines include physicians (MD/DO), nurse practitioners, physician assistants, licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, registered nurses, general and pediatric dentists, and registered dental hygienists. Participants must hold an active unrestricted license and satisfy the program’s citizenship, debt, service-obligation, and HPSA requirements.
Eligible Practice Sites
Eligible site types include FQHCs and community health centers, FQHC look-alikes, CMS-certified Rural Health Clinics, community outpatient and mental-health facilities, state and county health department clinics, free clinics, mobile units, school-based programs, qualified Critical Access Hospital outpatient clinics, state mental-health facilities, correctional or detention facilities, and qualifying private practices. Practice sites must meet the program’s HPSA and access requirements, including applicable Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP participation, a sliding fee scale, and care regardless of ability to pay.
Service Requirements
Full-time service is generally at least 40 hours per week for at least 45 weeks per year; half-time service is generally 20 to 39 hours per week for at least 45 weeks per year. Participants must practice at an eligible site in a HPSA corresponding to their discipline.
Atlas Analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 82/100. This is a meaningful Georgia healthcare-workforce recruitment and retention opportunity, especially for rural and underserved practice sites, but the direct applicant is the individual clinician rather than the employer.
N9+ Fit: 0/100. QC Healthcare Fit: 0/100. The award is restricted to repayment of qualifying educational loans and is not an equipment, technology, procurement, or vendor-funding mechanism. Atlas should not force N9+ or QC Healthcare into this program.
Required Application Package
The current 2026 provider application requires discipline and license documentation, practice-site information, a copy of the current employment contract with the practice site, and a current statement for each qualifying educational loan. The separate program questionnaire collects the applicant’s NPI, employment status and other workforce information, including whether the clinician provides telehealth, substance-use treatment or integrated behavioral health services.
Practice Site Requirements
The practice site must submit its own site application identifying the site, a contact person and email, the applicable HPSA identification, the supported provider, and the practice type. The site official must certify the program’s HPSA, sliding-fee, patient-access and reporting requirements; the form also calls for IRS nonprofit documentation when applicable and a notarized practice-site certification. The official site application directs completed forms to lisa.selfe1@dch.ga.gov or tregister@dch.ga.gov, or by mail to the State Office of Rural Health, Primary Care Office, 3002 Frontage Road Unit M, Cordele, GA 31015.
Application Readiness
Applicants should confirm profession and practice-site eligibility, verify the applicable HPSA, assemble educational-loan documentation, complete the provider application and questionnaire, and coordinate the required site application with the practice site. The official program contacts are Lisa Selfe at 470-543-2994 and Tina Register at 229-322-4630.
Official source: Georgia Department of Community Health — State Loan Repayment Program.