Health Care Bonuses and Loans

For just about every specialty or field within the Army Medical Department (AMEDD), the Guard offers a bonus and/or loan repayment program, making your service financially commensurate with your profession.

Medical Professional Officer Accession Bonus (OAB)

With a three-year service agreement, medical and dental professionals could receive a special pay accession bonus, for which clinical psychologists, family nurse practitioners, physician assistants, social workers and veterinarians are also eligible to apply. (Applicants who have completed 19 or more years of commissioned service are ineligible to receive special pay.)

The Guard is currently seeking physicians, residents, fellows and medical students who match for residencies in the following specialties:

• Cardiology
• Emergency Medicine
• Endocrinology
• Family Practice
• Gastroenterology
• General Surgery
• Infectious Disease
• Internal Medicine
• Medical Oncology/Hematology
• Nephrology
• OB-GYN
• Orthopedic Surgeon
• Physician
• Preventive Medicine
• Pulmonary Disease
• Rheumatology

Medical Professional OAB pay is paid out at the beginning of each year. AMEDD officers are required to serve for 12 months for each payment. Upon completion of your Medical Professional OAB service agreement, you also might be eligible for the Retention Bonus.

To determine your eligibility for the Medical Professional OAB, contact the AMEDD specialty branch recruiter within your state.

Health Care Professional Loan Repayment Program (HPLRP)

Health care providers in the Medical and Dental Corps, including clinical psychologists, can receive loan repayment assistance—up to $250,000 for certain specialties—by agreeing to a seven-year service commitment with the Guard ($40,000 per year for six years and $10,000 the seventh year, with a $250,000 lifetime cap).

To be eligible, Army National Guard officers must serve in the Selected Reserve. For each year of satisfactory service in the Selected Reserve, any DoD-authorized student loan(s) will be considered eligible for repayment.

Physician assistants, social workers and veterinarians may qualify for loan repayments based off the current fiscal year pay plan. To determine your eligibility for the HPLRP, contact the AMEDD Specialty Branch Recruiter within your state.

Specialized Training Assistance Program (STRAP)

The Guard can help you receive advanced training that will help you pursue your desired specialty, both within the Guard and after your service is complete. If you are training in the specialties listed above, you are eligible for the Specialized Training Assistance Program (STRAP), which offers a monthly stipend of $2,270. Since the stipend amount is adjusted annually, for future updates, contact your state AMEDD Specialty Branch Recruiter to receive the most current information.

To qualify, you must be unconditionally accepted into the education program or residency for which you seek funding. You'll incur a one-year service obligation for every six months (or part thereof) for which you receive the stipend. Your obligation begins immediately following the completion of your residency.

HPLRP and STRAP benefits may be offered at the same time, provided you have completed at least two years of residency training.

Medical and Dental Student Stipend Program (MDSSP)

The Medical and Dental Student Stipend Program (MDSSP) is an incentive-based program that offers medical and dental students a monthly stipend of at least $2,270. In return, each participant will incur a one-year service obligation for every six months (or part thereof) for which they receive the stipend. Since the stipend amount is adjusted annually, for future updates, contact your state AMEDD Specialty Branch Recruiter to receive the most current information.

Your obligation begins immediately following the completion of dental school or completion of your residency unless you enter into STRAP for residency in an eligible specialty. In that special case:

• Your MDSSP obligation starts at the beginning of residency;
• Your MDSSP obligation is reduced by one year for each year (or part thereof) for which the STRAP stipend was provided.