Kansas House Bill HB2361

Kansas 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/7/25
• Refer: 2/7/25

Caption

Abolishing the nursing scholarship program and creating the Kansas healthcare service scholarship program to include part-time students and expand the list of eligible programs.

Summary

HB 2361 abolishes the existing nursing service scholarship program and replaces it with a renamed and expanded Kansas healthcare service scholarship program. The bill broadens eligibility beyond nursing to include a wide range of healthcare-related education and training programs at the associate, baccalaureate, and graduate levels, including allied health, behavioral health, emergency medical services, imaging, therapy, pharmacy, public health, medical coding, and other clinical and non-clinical occupations. It also adds part-time students as eligible participants, defines part-time enrollment, and updates terminology throughout the scholarship statutes so that references to the former nursing program apply to the new healthcare service scholarship program. The bill preserves the basic structure of the scholarship program: recipients must complete their program, obtain licensure where applicable, and then practice in Kansas for a required period, with repayment obligations if they fail to meet the service commitment. It also continues the sponsorship model for students tied to rural healthcare employers and expands the types of sponsoring entities, including certain facilities in rural opportunity zones, mental health facilities, hospitals with psychiatric units, and state agencies employing healthcare professionals. The bill redesignates the program fund and repayment fund, abolishes the discontinued attendance fund, and directs the transfer of remaining moneys into the new program structure. In terms of state law, HB 2361 makes extensive conforming amendments to the scholarship statutes in Chapter 74 and repeals the existing sections to fully replace the nursing-specific framework. It shifts the program’s legal identity from a nursing scholarship to a broader healthcare workforce scholarship, while keeping administration with the state board of regents and maintaining annual reporting requirements to legislative education committees. The measure is designed to expand the state’s pipeline of healthcare workers and make the scholarship available to a larger pool of students and institutions. The general sentiment reflected by the bill’s framing is supportive of workforce development and healthcare access, especially in response to shortages in nursing and other health professions. The bill was requested on behalf of the Kansas Hospital Association, suggesting strong institutional support from healthcare employers. No committee testimony or recorded votes were provided, so there is no direct evidence of opposition or amendment debate in the supplied materials. The main points of potential contention are the breadth of the expansion and the fiscal and administrative implications of converting a nursing-focused program into a much larger healthcare scholarship system. Possible questions include whether the expanded list of eligible programs could dilute resources away from nursing, how part-time service obligations will be measured and enforced, and whether the state can sustain the scholarship and repayment funds at the larger scale. Another possible issue is the inclusion of non-clinical healthcare occupations and multiple institution types, which may raise concerns about program scope and prioritization.

Impact

HB 2361 would substantially revise Kansas scholarship law by repealing the existing nursing service scholarship framework and replacing it with the Kansas healthcare service scholarship program. It expands eligibility to part-time students and to a much broader set of healthcare-related programs and occupations, while preserving service obligations, repayment rules, sponsorship arrangements, and state board of regents administration. The bill also redesignates and restructures related state treasury funds and requires conforming statutory changes across the scholarship provisions.

Sentiment

The bill appears generally favorable and workforce-oriented, with its purpose framed as addressing healthcare staffing needs and broadening access to scholarships. The request from the Kansas Hospital Association suggests support from the healthcare industry. Because no committee transcripts or vote records were provided, there is no documented floor or committee opposition in the supplied materials, though the bill’s expanded scope could invite scrutiny over cost and program administration.

Contention

The likely areas of contention are the program’s expansion beyond nursing, the inclusion of part-time students, and the addition of many allied health and non-clinical healthcare fields. Critics could question whether the broader eligibility criteria will stretch limited scholarship dollars and whether service obligations can be effectively tracked for a larger and more diverse set of recipients. The sponsorship provisions, especially for rural and psychiatric facilities, may also raise implementation concerns for employers and the state board of regents.