SINCE MARCH, 1962, the AMA-ERF Medical Education Loan Guarantee Program has secured more than 11,500 commercial bank loans for medical students, interns, and residents who needed additional money during their training periods. In principal amount, nearly $14 million has been loaned.
Notwithstanding the fact that all qualified applicants have received loans, the Congress has considered and passed the Health Professions Educational Assistance Act of 1963 (PL 88-129) which, in part, will provide subsidized loans for students of medicine, dentistry, and osteopathy. Many questions are being raised about the operation and probable relationship between the AMA-ERF program and the federal program.
For example, some have asked why the interest rates of the banks in the AMA-ERF program can't be substantially lower. Others have wondered if the "free" money of the government (no interest for as long as seven years) will displace or eliminate the AMA-ERF