ARRA funds to help healthcare students announced

Sebelius announces expansion of healthcare training programs

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced on Friday that new funds would be allotted to help expand healthcare training programs in the U.S.

A total of $33 million are part of a $500 million allocation to HSS's Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The money will be used to address many facets of the shortage of healthcare workers currently being experienced in the U.S.

The largest allocation - $19.3 million – will go to funding healthcare scholarships for disadvantaged students. Additionally, $2.6 percent will go to Nursing Workforce Diversity, a program that will offer grants, scholarships and retention activities to disadvantaged students studying for careers as nurses. The rest of the funds will go to traineeships, community centers and career development programs aimed at increasing the domestic healthcare workforce.

"These funds are helping us rebuild the infrastructure needed to produce more skilled health professionals, and they are expanding essential primary care services to hundreds of thousands of additional Americans through our health center system."

The new funds may come as welcome news to those who are interested in a career in healthcare but have not yet begun their education due to lack of funds.