Delaware State Loan Repayment Program (SLRP) — Primary Care, Dental & Behavioral Health

Delaware's State Loan Repayment Program supports qualified primary care, dental and behavioral/mental health professionals serving eligible public or nonprofit sites in Health Professional Shortage Areas. Applications are accepted continuously, with the next contract-cycle deadline September 1, 2026.

FundingCurrent DHCC weighted award table provides up to $100,000 for advanced-level practitioners and up to $60,000 for mid-level practitioners, depending on qualifications. The public page also contains a conflicting general reference to $150,000; Atlas uses the detailed current award table unless DHCC clarifies otherwise.

DeadlineSeptember 1, 2026 — next contract-cycle deadline; applications are accepted continuously. DHCC lists an anticipated December 1, 2026 contract start for this cycle, with later deadlines on December 1, 2026, February 1, 2027, May 1, 2027 and July 1, 2027. No submission time is stated on the official page.

Last verifiedAugust 30, 2026

Required next actionConfirm the clinician's discipline, Delaware license, qualifying educational debt and service-obligation eligibility; verify the public or nonprofit practice site is in a qualifying HPSA and meets Medicare, Medicaid, S-CHIP and sliding-fee requirements; complete the employer, practitioner and lender-verification forms; and submit the full packet to the Delaware Health Care Commission by the next applicable deadline.

Broad Eligibility

Qualified dental, behavioral/mental health and primary care professionals may apply, including physicians, dentists, nurse practitioners, certified nurse-midwives, physician assistants, psychologists, licensed counselors and social workers, pharmacists, psychiatric nurse specialists, registered dental hygienists and registered nurses. The clinician generally must serve at a HRSA-qualified public or nonprofit facility in a Delaware HPSA and satisfy federal and state service requirements.

Atlas Analysis

A durable clinician-recruitment tool for Delaware safety-net and underserved providers. The program can improve recruitment and retention without requiring the employer to carry the full incentive cost, but both clinician and practice-site eligibility are material. Atlas flags an inconsistency on the public DHCC page: one narrative sentence references assistance up to $150,000, while the detailed current weighted award table tops out at $100,000 for advanced disciplines and $60,000 for mid-level disciplines. Until DHCC resolves that conflict, Atlas treats the detailed award table as controlling for planning.

Source verificationOfficial government source · dhss.delaware.govAtlas last verified this record August 30, 2026. Always use the funder's current application materials, amendments and portal instructions as the controlling source.View source and application materials ↗