How to Meet NHSC Site Eligibility Requirements

To become a National Health Service Corps (NHSC) site, your site must be a certain type, and meet a list of requirements.

This is an overview of our requirements. Review complete details in our Site Reference Guide (PDF - 788 KB).

Site Types

Review the types below to determine if your site type is eligible to become an NHSC site.

Note: If you're unsure of your site’s type or if you have questions about your site’s ineligibility, use this map to find, and email the Division of Regional Operations (DRO) contact in your state.

Site Requirements

Review the NHSC Site Agreement (PDF - 358 MB). It has the full set of requirements your site must meet – both at the time of application and continuing as long as you maintain NHSC site status.

Here's a summary of those requirements.

General

• Function as part of a system of care that either offers or assures access to ancillary, inpatient, and specialty referrals.
• Provide services without regard to a person’s race, color, sex, national origin, disability, religion, age*, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

*Age is not an applicable discriminatory factor for pediatric, geriatric, or obstetrics/gynecology sites.

Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs)

• Be located in, and treat patients from, a federally-designated Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA).
• Provide culturally competent and linguistically-appropriate, comprehensive primary care services (medical, dental, and/or behavioral), which correspond to the designated HPSA type.

Payment for Services

NHSC sites (with some exceptions) must:

• Provide services for free (or, for a nominal charge, consistent with the site’s policy) to individuals and families with annual incomes at or below 100% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.
• Provide services at a discount based on family size and income for individuals and families with incomes above 100% and, at or below, 200% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines.
  • Sliding Fee Discount Program (PDF - 878 KB)
  • Make every reasonable effort to secure payment according to the schedule of fees
• Accept assignment for Medicare beneficiaries, and have an appropriate agreement with the applicable state agency for Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries;
• Prominently post signage (onsite and online, if applicable) stating that:
  • Your site will not deny services based on a patient’s inability to pay.
  • Your site will not deny services for any reason – including: race, color, sex, national origin, disability, religion, age*, sexual orientation, or gender identity.
  • Discounts are available based on family size and income.
  • The availability of the Sliding Fee Discount Program.
• NHSC sites must provide the NHSC with documentation that no one is charged or billed for services, and individuals are not denied health service because of inability to pay.

Clinician Recruitment & Retention

• Use a clinician credentialing process that, at a minimum, includes reference review, licensure verification, and a query of the National Practitioner Data Bank (NPDB).
• Adhere to sound fiscal management policies and adopt clinician recruitment and retention policies to help the patient population, the site, and the community obtain maximum benefits.
• Maintain a clinician recruitment and retention plan
  • Have a current copy of the plan onsite for review
  • Adopt recruitment policies to keep up clinical staffing levels to properly serve the community.

Clinician Support

• Agree not to reduce an NHSC clinician’s salary due to NHSC support.
• Allow NHSC clinicians to maintain a primary care clinical practice (full-time or half-time) as indicated in their contract with NHSC and must be knowledgeable of the clinician’s specific NHSC service requirements.
  • NHSC Loan Repayment Program Application and Program Guidance (PDF - 963 KB)
  • NHSC Scholarship Program Application & Program Guidance (PDF - 577 KB)
  • NHSC Students to Service Loan Repayment Program Application and Program Guidance (PDF - 645 KB)
• Support NHSC clinicians with funding and arrangements, including clinical coverage, for their time away from the site to attend or participate in NHSC events.
• Make appropriate and efficient use of assigned NHSC clinicians, or risk losing status as an NHSC site and/or deactivation.

Communication, Submissions & Site Visits

• Communicate any change in site or clinician employment status to us.
• Maintain all personnel and practice records associated with an NHSC clinician.
  • Make records available for review by NHSC representatives.
• Complete and submit continuous data on the NHSC Site Data Tables (PDF -1.3 MB) to us with your site application, during site re-certification, and before/during site visits.
  • Must have six months of data.
• Comply with requests for a site visit from the NHSC or the State PCO with adherence to all NHSC requirements.

Behavioral Health Services Certification

If your site provides behavioral health services, your site administrator must submit the NHSC Comprehensive Behavioral Health Services Checklist (PDF - 397 KB).

These NHSC-approved sites are EXEMPT from the Comprehensive Behavioral Health Services Certification process:

• FQHCs
• FQHC Look-Alikes
• ITUs
• Federal Prisons
• State Prisons (only for the purposes of the Behavioral Health Requirements)
• ICE Health Service Corps

Site administrators with sites that may be eligible for NHSC auto-approval must contact us directly to add new sites to the BHW Customer Service Portal.

How to apply

Follow the steps of our NHSC site application process.