Rhode Island General Laws Title 23. Health and Safety § 23-14.1-9. Penalty for failure to complete contract

(a) If the eligible health professional fails to begin or fails to complete service, they will incur a debt to the state in an amount not less than the damages that would be owed under the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program default provisions pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 6(A), Subchapter II, Part D, Subpart iii, § 254o.  Upon determination by the director, if that the eligible health professional has failed to fulfill the terms and conditions of the contract, and no exception has been determined under subsection (c), the eligible health professional shall pay an amount equal to the sum of the following:

(b) All payments pursuant to subsections (a)(1), (a)(2), and (a)(3) of this section shall be made to the state of Rhode Island, for the benefit of the Rhode Island health professional loan repayment program, within one year after being notified by the director in writing that the eligible health professional has failed to abide by the terms and conditions of their contract.  The director is authorized to recover payments and/or penalties and return the funds to the Rhode Island health professional loan repayment program to avoid having the amounts deducted from the department's federal grant by the federal grant funding authority.  Eligible health professionals are considered to be in default or breach if they do not complete the period of obligated service at an eligible site in accordance with their contract, or otherwise fail to comply with the terms of their contract, even if no monies have yet been disbursed to or on behalf of the participant.

(c) Where the director, subject to the approval of the board and/or as defined in regulation, determines that there exists justifiable cause for the failure of a recipient to practice pursuant to the terms and conditions of the contract, the director may relieve the recipient of the obligation to fulfill any or all of the terms of the contract.