Three Priority Categories, and One Exception Worth Knowing
Program and regulatory figures verified October 9, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
Priority does not change the money. It changes which batch your application lands in, and non-priority applications go into the second and final batch regardless of when you filed.
Why priority matters more than it sounds
MDHHS: non-priority applicants working at sites scoring below the threshold "will be included in the second and final batch of applications, regardless of the submission date."
Filing early does not move you up. Category does.
1. Inpatient pediatric psychiatry
Psychiatrists, physician assistants and nurse practitioners specialising in pediatrics at inpatient psychiatric units. To qualify they "must be involved in the assessment, admission, and treatment of pediatric inpatients."
★ This category suspends three rules that bind everyone else. Applicants may be:
- Inpatient hospital-based, instead of clinic-based
- Treating an inpatient hospital population, instead of an outpatient ambulatory one
- At a site that does not have a mental health HPSA facility designation and is not inside a mental-health geographic HPSA
Employers still contribute 20%, and every other eligibility requirement still applies.
2. ★★ Genesee County — the real exception
Providers at practice sites in Genesee County "will continue to be a priority", and the carve-out is unusual:
"Provider practice sites are not required to be located within a Health Professional Shortage Area."
Everywhere else in Michigan, the shortage-area designation is the gate. In Genesee County it is waived. Employers contribute 20%.
★ If you are weighing offers and one of them is in Genesee County, that offer carries an advantage that has nothing to do with the salary attached to it.
3. Northern obstetric providers
All obstetric service providers at practice sites in, or north of, these counties:
| The boundary counties |
|---|
| Mason · Lake · Osceola · Clare · Gladwin · Arenac · Bay · Huron |
The line runs across the state, and everything at or above it counts. Who is included is broader than the label suggests:
- OB/GYN physicians and certified nurse midwives
- ★ Family medicine physicians, NPs and PAs who provide obstetric services regularly, at hospital or non-hospital clinics
- ★ Clinicians who provide prenatal care but do not perform deliveries may also receive priority status
★ One condition: for providers other than OB/GYN physicians and CNMs, the employer must include a signed letter with the Practice Site Application. Miss it and the priority does not attach, and under the 2026 rules a missing attachment is a screened-out application. Why that is now fatal.
4. The HPSA score route, for everyone else
If you are in none of the three categories, there is still a path:
"Non-priority practice sites with Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) scores of at least eight, will be treated as priority sites."
★ With a catch worth reading twice: "To be considered a priority applicant, all the non-priority practice sites at which a provider may complete their MSLRP service obligation must have HPSA scores of at least eight."
One low-scoring site in your rotation drops the whole application to the second batch. If you split time across locations, check every one of them before you apply.
★ Why a lender is telling you this
Because the category you fall into changes the probability and timing of a six-figure reduction in your debt, and that is the number underneath your mortgage file. We are not the programme. MDHHS administers it, scores it and decides it. We read its published rules so a physician can plan a purchase around a realistic debt picture.
Mike Certo, NMLS #260555. (480) 296-6513.
Frequently asked questions
Which providers get priority for Michigan loan repayment in 2026?
Three categories. Inpatient pediatric psychiatrists and the physician assistants and nurse practitioners in inpatient pediatric psychiatric units; applicants at practice sites in Genesee County; and obstetric service providers at sites in or north of Mason, Lake, Osceola, Clare, Gladwin, Arenac, Bay and Huron counties. Separately, any non-priority site with a Health Professional Shortage Area score of eight or higher is treated as priority.Do Genesee County sites need to be in a shortage area?
No. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services states that for Genesee County applicants, provider practice sites are not required to be located within a Health Professional Shortage Area. Employers must still contribute 20 percent of the loan repayment agreement. This is the only geographic carve-out of its kind in the programme.Which counties count as northern for the obstetric priority?
Practice sites in, or north of, Mason, Lake, Osceola, Clare, Gladwin, Arenac, Bay and Huron counties. The category includes OB/GYN physicians and certified nurse midwives, plus family medicine physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants who provide obstetric services regularly, and clinicians who provide prenatal care without performing deliveries may also receive priority.What HPSA score do I need for Michigan loan repayment priority?
Eight or higher. A non-priority practice site scoring at least eight is treated as a priority site. The requirement is strict: all of the non-priority practice sites at which a provider may complete the service obligation must score at least eight, so one lower-scoring location in a rotation drops the application to the second batch.Does applying early improve my MSLRP chances?
No. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services states that non-priority applicants working at sites scoring below the threshold will be included in the second and final batch of applications regardless of the submission date. Priority category, not filing date, determines which batch an application lands in.Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about physician mortgage financing, not a loan commitment and not legal, tax or financial advice. The Michigan State Loan Repayment Program is administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, not by Cornerstone; its terms, award amounts, priorities and application windows are set by MDHHS and change. Figures here carry the date we verified them against the programme's own published materials. Physician-loan program terms, eligible degrees and overlays are set by the lender and change. All loans are subject to borrower, property and program qualification.