SPARC Act
Latest action (Mar 19, 2026) — Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. Hearings held.
What it does
Congressional Research Service, Apr 9, 2025Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care Act or the SPARC Act
This bill establishes student loan repayment programs to support the provision of specialty medical care in rural areas.
The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) must carry out such a program for specialty medicine physicians (i.e., practicing in an area other than primary care) who provide care in rural communities with shortages of such physicians. Physicians must agree to a period of obligated service and, for each year of such service, HRSA must pay one-sixth of the principal payment and interest on eligible loans up to a maximum cap of $250,000. Additionally, HRSA may carry out a similar loan repayment program for nonphysician specialty health care providers.
Face Value
as introducedHow much of this bill its name accounts for.
- Every bill starts at100
- Nothing counted against it: one area of law, and short enough that length doesn't register.
Face Value measures reach, not honesty. A big bill can be accurately named, and a low score is not an accusation — it means the contents reach further than any short title could describe. Count it yourself ↗ How this is worked out
Who lobbied on this
5 organizationsThese organizations told Congress, in their own quarterly disclosures, that they were lobbying on this bill.
- American College of Cardiologyno position stated
“…provide a specialty physician loan repayment program with the SPARC Act (H.R 4681/S.…” filing ↗
- American College of Rheumatologyno position stated
“…Act (HR 4299) PBM Reform Act of 2025 (HR 4317) Workforce Mobility Act (S.2031) Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care, SPARC, Act (H.R 4681/S. 1380) Connect for Health Act of 2025 (HR 2406/S. 1261) Telehealth Modernization Act (HR 5081/S 2709) House Concurrent Res. 14 establishing…” filing ↗
- American Medical Associationno position stated
“…Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025, all provisions H.R. 4681, Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care (SPARC) Act, all provisions S. 1380, Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care (SPARC) Act, all provisions H.R. 6468, Rural Residency Planning and Development Act of 2025, all…” filing ↗
- American Society of Anesthesiologistsno position stated
“…Reduction Act of 2025: residency positions S.709, Conrad State 30 and Physician Access Reauthorization Act: Foreign physician immigration status S. 1380, Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care (SPARC) Act: physician shortages in rural areas HR…” filing ↗
- Society for Vascular Surgeryno position stated
“…H.R. 4681/S. 1380, the Specialty Physicians Advancing Rural Care (SPARC) Act” filing ↗
Most filings say only that an organization lobbied on a bill, not which side it took — where that's the case we say so rather than guessing. Quotes are verbatim from the filing. How this is built.
Discussion
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