More health care providers could be encouraged to work in underserved areas of Washington state under a pair of bills to be introduced in Olympia next week that would help those providers pay back their student loans. Senate Bill 5010 and House Bill 1080, which have bipartisan sponsors and are supported by a number of Washington state health organizations, would restore and increase a currently underfunded state loan repayment program for health professionals working in rural areas. The legislation would give the incentive to a wide range of health care professionals to work in state- and federally designated areas that are considered underserved. Many of these rural areas are in Eastern Washington.
