The Healey-Driscoll Administration has announced that the third round of applications for the MA Repay Program is now open, with an additional $16.5 million available to support health and human service workers across the state.

The MA Repay Program helps people enter and stay in the health- care field, addressing workforce shortages. The program is intended to positively impact the health and wellbeing of Massachusetts residents, strengthen our economy and competitiveness, and promote equity in the healthcare profession.

Through this additional investment, MA Repay will provide educational loan repayment to direct care professionals and supervisors of direct care professionals who provide treatment, support, or services to clients or their families in a home-based or community-based human service organization. This marks the first time that early education, childcare, home health and other home- and community-based workers are eligible to apply for educational loan repayments through the MA Repay program.

Qualifying professionals include care coordinators, peer specialists, social workers, nurses, personal care attendants, certified nursing assistants, developmental specialists, educator assistants and family child care assistants, working in eligible settings. Loan repayment awards will range between $3,000 and $30,000 per individual depending on academic degree level attained and whether the individual works part- or full-time.

In addition to the minimum eligibility requirements, applicants who meet one or more of the following criteria will be prioritized to receive an award:

• Applicant can communicate with patients and provide care in a language other than English and that skill matches the needs of the site where they work.
• Applicant can demonstrate through a short answer response, the ability to support access and delivery of services in a culturally competent manner to beneficiaries, including those with limited English proficiency, diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds, disabilities, and regardless of sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity).
• Applicant works or resides in a community prioritized in the COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Initiative: Boston, Brockton, Chelsea, Everett, Fall River, Fitchburg, Framingham, Haverhill, Holyoke, Lawrence, Leominster, Lowell, Lynn, Malden, Methuen, New Bedford, Randolph, Revere, Springfield, and Worcester.
• Applicant has worked in the direct care field for 3 or more years.

Applications open January 29 and close on February 26 at 11:59 p.m. EST, or when applicants’ total requested award amount hits approximately twice the available award funding, whichever comes first. MA Repay is funded through the American Rescue Plan Act and funding appropriated by the legislature. Three additional rounds of this program will be made available in 2024.

The first round of MA Repay was awarded in August 2023 and provided $140.9 million in student loan repayment awards to 2,935 primary care and behavioral health providers, and the second round that launched in September provides loan repayment to RNs and LPNS providing continuous skilled nursing care to MassHealth members and Department of Mental Health (DMH) direct care workers.

For information about how to apply, please visit: marepay.org.