§ 300e-4. Loans and loan guarantees for initial operation costs
(a)
Authority
The Secretary may—
(1)
make loans to public or private health maintenance organizations to assist them in meeting the amount by which their costs of operation during a period not to exceed the first sixty months of their operation exceed their revenues in that period;
(2)
make loans to public or private health maintenance organizations to assist them in meeting the amount by which their costs of operation, which the Secretary determines are attributable to significant expansion in their membership or area served and which are incurred during a period not to exceed the first sixty months of their operation after such expansion, exceed their revenues in that period which the Secretary determines are attributable to such expansion; and
(3)
guarantee to non-Federal lenders payment of the principal of and the interest on loans made to private health maintenance organizations for the amounts referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2).
No loan or loan guarantee may be made under this subsection for the costs of operation of a health maintenance organization unless the Secretary determines that the organization has made all reasonable attempts to meet such costs, and unless the Secretary has made a grant or loan to, entered into a contract with, or guaranteed a loan for, the organization in fiscal year 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, or 1985 under this section or section
300e–3
(b) [1] of this title (as in effect before October 1, 1985).
(b)
Limitations
(1)
Except as provided in paragraph (2), the aggregate amount of principal of loans made or guaranteed, or both, under subsection (a) of this section for a health maintenance organization may not exceed $7,000,000. In any twelve-month period the amount disbursed to a health maintenance organization under this section (either directly by the Secretary, by an escrow agent under the terms of an escrow agreement, or by a lender under a guaranteed loan) may not exceed $3,000,000.
(d)
Time limit on loans and loan guarantees
No loan may be made or guaranteed under this section after September 30, 1986.
(f)
Medically underserved populations
In considering applications for loan guarantees under this section, the Secretary shall give special consideration to applications for health maintenance organizations which will serve medically underserved populations.
[1] See References in Text note below.