$13M Available to Expand Medical Education and the Primary Care Workforce

The Health Resources and Services Administration has opened $13 million in federal funding to help qualifying public medical schools prepare more physicians for careers in primary care.

The Medical Student Education Program focuses on states facing significant projected primary care physician shortages, particularly in rural, Tribal, and other communities with limited access to healthcare.

Funding may support medical education, clinical training, student scholarships and support services, faculty and preceptor development, equipment, infrastructure, and partnerships with community-based healthcare providers.

HRSA expects to make approximately eight awards through this competition.

Grant Breakdown

FY2027 Medical Student Education Program

The Medical Student Education Program supports public medical schools working to expand the primary care workforce in areas with projected provider shortages.

The program is intended to influence not only what medical students learn, but also which specialties they enter and where they ultimately practice.

Funding Agency: Health Resources and Services Administration

Bureau: Bureau of Health Workforce

Total Funding Available: $13 million

Expected Number of Awards: Eight

Funding Range: $1 million to $1.625 million per award

Period of Performance: December 1, 2026, through June 30, 2031

Award Type: Grant

Match Requirement: At least 1% of the annual federal award

Funding Opportunity Number: HRSA-27-098

Assistance Listing: 93.680

The required match may include eligible cash or in-kind contributions from the applicant, project partners, or other third parties. Funds from another federal award may not be used to satisfy the match.

Eligible Applicants

Eligibility is highly restricted.

An applicant must:

• Be an accredited public medical school

• Be located in an eligible state with a projected primary care physician shortage

• Not currently have an active HRSA Medical Student Education award

• Provide documentation of its accreditation

• Meet the minimum matching requirement

HRSA initially identifies 12 states in the top quartile for projected primary care physician shortages:

• Alabama

• Arizona

• Florida

• Georgia

• Kentucky

• Mississippi

• Nevada

• New Jersey

• Oklahoma

• Tennessee

• Texas

• Utah

However, the NOFO’s appendix identifies 23 public medical schools in only six states that appear eligible after HRSA excludes institutions with active Medical Student Education grants:

• Arizona

• Florida

• Georgia

• New Jersey

• Tennessee

• Texas

The appendix does not necessarily prevent another qualifying public medical school in one of those six states from applying if it can document that it meets HRSA’s requirements.

Schools currently funded through HRSA-23-124 or HRSA-24-074 are not eligible.

Individuals, private medical schools, and institutions that cannot document public status and qualifying accreditation are not eligible lead applicants.

Program Goals

The primary goal is to increase the number of physicians practicing primary care in states with projected provider shortages.

HRSA places particular emphasis on physicians serving:

• Rural communities

• Tribal communities

• Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas

• Other communities with limited access to primary care

• Populations experiencing barriers to preventive and chronic-disease care

The program also recognizes the role of nutrition, prevention, lifestyle medicine, and chronic-disease management in improving long-term health outcomes.

Required Program Objectives

Funded institutions must address three major objectives.

1. Expand Primary Care Medical Education

Medical schools may develop or strengthen curricula and student experiences that encourage careers in primary care and practice in communities with provider shortages.

Student support may include:

• Scholarships and other eligible financial assistance

• Academic support

• Mentoring

• Career guidance

• Experiences in rural and Tribal communities

• Support for students committed to practicing in shortage areas

2. Strengthen Nutrition and Chronic-Disease Education

Recipients must develop or expand evidence-based education addressing:

• Nutrition

• Disease prevention

• Chronic-disease treatment and management

• Dietary interventions

• Lifestyle-related health risks

• Patient counseling

The curriculum should incorporate clinical, classroom, and community-based learning activities.

3. Develop Community-Based Clinical Partnerships

Applicants must establish or strengthen partnerships that provide medical students with community-based primary care training.

At least one clinical training site must be a primary care setting such as:

• A Federally Qualified Health Center

• A Rural Health Clinic

• A Teaching Health Center

• A community mental health center

• An Indian Health Service facility

• A health center operated by a Tribe or Tribal organization

• An urban Indian health organization

• Another qualifying community-based primary care setting

Applicants are also expected to build relationships with community-based organizations serving areas experiencing severe primary care shortages.

Additional Allowable Activities

Funding may support:

• Direct student support

• Faculty and preceptor development

• Preceptor expenses

• Medical education infrastructure

• Equipment

• Maintenance

• Minor renovations or alterations

• New or expanded clinical rotations

• Postbaccalaureate premedical programs

• Data collection and program evaluation

• Community pathway programs that prepare future medical students

The project director must be a board-certified physician employed by the applicant institution and should dedicate approximately 20% of their time to the funded project.

Performance and Reporting Requirements

Recipients must track more than enrollment and classroom participation.

HRSA will expect evidence that the program is:

• Increasing student interest in primary care

• Expanding training in rural, Tribal, and other shortage areas

• Strengthening community-based clinical education

• Supporting students likely to practice in underserved communities

• Improving nutrition and chronic-disease education

• Building sustainable partnerships

• Contributing to measurable workforce outcomes

Recipients must participate in federally designed evaluations when requested and submit annual progress and performance reports.

Application Deadline

Application deadline: September 1, 2026

Expected award date: By November 2, 2026

Expected project start date: December 1, 2026

Only one application may be submitted per institution.

Review the complete FY2027 Medical Student Education Program NOFO.

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This is a significant workforce-development opportunity, but it is not a general university or public-health grant.

Eligibility must be confirmed before the institution invests time in proposal development. Being a university in one of the 12 states mentioned in the NOFO does not automatically make the institution eligible.

A competitive application will require coordination across medical education leadership, clinical partners, student-support departments, finance, institutional research, community organizations, and rural or Tribal healthcare providers.

The institution should already know which students it intends to support, where clinical training will occur, which communities face the greatest shortages, how partners will participate, and how it will track graduates into primary care careers.

This proposal cannot be built responsibly by the grants office alone.

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