Media Contact Information

Please contact the following member of Norton Public Relations team with any questions or comments, or for permission to use Norton logos or photographs.

Brian Rublein
Manager of Media Relations
Office: (502) 629-8070

If you are unable to reach Brian, please call the media pager at (502) 421-5712.  You may also contact Norton Healthcare Marketing & Communications department at (502) 629-8070.

NEWS RELEASE

Norton Healthcare Announces Plan to Help Nurses Pay Back Best in Care Student Loans

LOUISVILLE , KY. : (Sept. 19, 2008): Area nurses finding themselves saddled with unanticipated student loan debt could find financial relief through Norton Healthcare’s new Best in Care Nursing Loan Forgiveness Plan. Details of the plan which could provide as much as $1.75 million per year in support will be announced during a 1:30 p.m. news conference on Monday, Sept. 22, in the second floor auditorium of Norton Hospital , 200 E. Chestnut St .

The Best in Care Program originally was created in 2003 by The Student Loan People, the state’s only public nonprofit student loan provider, to address Kentucky ’s critical shortage in nursing. The program provided forgiveness for up to 20 percent of nursing student loans annually for each year of full-time nursing service. The program was funded by The Student Loan People’s federal interest subsidies and fee income, which were nearly eliminated when Congress passed the College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA) in 2007. Consequently, nursing school graduates now are unexpectedly required to pay back student loans they thought would be forgiven. No new students will be added to the program.

“The health care industry is facing the most critical nursing shortage in history and as a leader in this industry with concern for the future of health care, we need to think of creative ways to attract qualified professionals to care for the sick and injured in our area,” said Stephen A. Williams, president and chief executive officer, Norton Healthcare. “We hope the Norton Healthcare Best in Care Loan Forgiveness Plan will help relieve some of the burden nurses face. By doing so, we can help strengthen the quality of health care in our community,” Williams said.

Under the terms of the plan, currently employed and newly-hired registered nurses who have student loans with The Student Loan People and meet other established criteria will receive $2,500 in student loan forgiveness for each year worked as a full-time nurse at Norton Healthcare. The $2,500 payment will be applied to the principal of the loan; interest payments and taxes are the responsibility of the nurses as required by IRS regulations.

There currently are some 350 nurses employed at Norton Healthcare with outstanding loans and 3,887 nurses throughout Kentucky who participated in the Best in Care Program when it was administered by The Student Loan People.

 “This is a win-win situation for nurses and the community,” said Tracy E. Williams, R.N., M.S., senior vice president and system chief nursing officer, Norton Healthcare. “By helping to alleviate the financial burden faced by many of our area nurses, we can make it easier for them to pursue their health care careers and that ultimately benefits our patients. At the same time, nurses can benefit from the professional development programs and wide variety of career opportunities afforded by the Norton Healthcare system.”

Registered nurses who participate in this plan can work anywhere within the Norton Healthcare system – at community hospitals, tertiary and quaternary level hospitals, Norton Immediate Care Centers, Norton Cancer Institute and physician office practices. Norton Healthcare is active in developing registered nurses to practice in a variety of settings, including critical care, pediatric care, emergency departments and perioperative services, according to Williams. “We want to help registered nurses develop their career within Norton Healthcare. There are so many possibilities for each nurse and we will help them find their ideal career path,” she said.

The program will begin on Jan. 1, 2009 and after working one year of full-time employment at Norton Healthcare, $2,500 will be paid towards the principal of participants’ loans.   A nurse who is a part of the plan will not be required to make a payment at the beginning of 2009.  

Current Norton Healthcare registered nurses must apply for the program before Dec. 15, 2008 by filling out an application available on NortonHealthcare.com. Registered nurses not currently employed by Norton Healthcare must apply for a fulltime nursing position, meet all job requirements, be hired and begin working in a full time capacity by July 1, 2009.

For more information, call Kimberly Black Maffet, Norton Healthcare’s associate vice president for Workforce Development at (502) 629-7064 or e-mail bestincare@nortonhealthcare.org.

About Norton Healthcare

For more than a century Norton Healthcare’s faith heritage has guided its mission to provide quality health care to all those served. Today, Norton Healthcare is the Louisville area’s leading hospital and health care system (45 percent market share) and second largest private employer. The not-for-profit system – the largest in Kentucky and rated one of the top 100 integrated health care delivery systems in the country – includes four large hospitals in Louisville, eight Norton Immediate Care Centers, 9,500 employees, more than 200 employed medical providers at some 50 locations, and nearly 2,000 total physicians on its medical staff. Norton Healthcare serves the Greater Louisville metro area, including Southern Indiana and patients throughout Kentucky.

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