Enrolled Bill Summary

            Senate Bill 940 amends the Education Code to establish the Joint Admission Medical Program to recruit and help highly qualified, economically disadvantaged resident students prepare for, gain admission to, and succeed in medical school by providing them financial and academic support services, including scholarships and stipends and mentoring and internship programs, and guaranteeing their admission to at least one participating medical school. The bill identifies the medical schools required to participate in the program, requires them to establish the Joint Admission Medical Program Council to administer the program, and sets forth the council's duties.

            The bill establishes initial eligibility criteria for student applicants and eligibility criteria for continued participation in the program, and it requires each participant to enter into an agreement to maintain eligibility and to repay any scholarship or stipend received if the student enrolls in an out-of-state medical school. The bill also requires each participating medical school to enter into an agreement outlining the terms of its participation on the council and the resources, internship and mentoring programs, and services it is obligated to provide participating students, and it requires each public or private four-year university in the state also to enter into an agreement to provide the support services and academic programs necessary to prepare those students for medical school.