Nurses who earn a master's or
doctorate degree and then teach full-time at an accredited nursing
school would have their student loans paid off under a new bill in
the U.S. House. Nurses would be repaid up to $40,000 for a master's
degree and up to $80,000 for a doctorate under H.R. 1460.
The measure, which would create a
federal student loan repayment program, was introduced late last week
by Reps. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Tom Latham (R-IA). Grant recipients
would have to teach for four years to qualify for the loan repayment.
The proposal is in response to what
some call a deepening nurse shortage in long-term care, and
healthcare overall. The most recent study from the American
Association of Colleges of Nursing showed that nursing schools turned
away almost 50,000 qualified nursing school applicants. The top
reason cited (62.5%) was a shortage of nursing school faculty.