Photo credit: Gage Vota
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Dean James Nemitz, left, and Health Plan President and CEO Jeff Knight announce the inclusion of West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine in the Health Plan Scholarship Program.
Health Plan and the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine announced Friday that the school will be included in the Health Plan scholarship program.
Since its inception in 2009, the scholarship program has provided more than $43 million in scholarships to more than 50 medical and nursing students practicing in West Virginia.
“We started this program about 15 years ago. We noticed a shortage of family doctors in the area and wanted to come up with a way to help. This was a great opportunity for us to provide education and funding to underserved students,” said Jeff Knight, president and CEO of the health plan.
Founded in 1979, The Health Plan is a not-for-profit health maintenance organization whose mission is to manage and improve the health and well-being of its members.
“As a nonprofit, this is one way we can give back and donate to those less fortunate,” he added. “The health care worker shortage remains a major issue in West Virginia. Health Plan is committed to supporting our state’s health care workers and is excited to partner with the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine to offer a scholarship program to their students.”
James Nemitz, dean of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, said the program will benefit students.
“We have an agreement in place to allow students in our osteopathic medicine school to participate in a scholarship program that, if awarded, waives tuition fees. It’s a huge savings for students,” Nemitz said.
With this new partnership, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine students can apply in the final months of the 2024-25 scholarship cycle and will be eligible for the entire 2025-26 academic year. The scholarships pay students’ tuition and fees at the school’s in-state rate and are renewable for up to four years. Though the application process only recently opened, Nemitz said 11 students have already applied to the scholarship program.
“The idea behind this scholarship is that for each year that you receive the scholarship, you serve in the area where the health plan has a presence,” Nemitz added. “It definitely helps keep people in West Virginia and the surrounding areas. What we want is to keep doctors in the state.”
He is excited about the program and believes his students are just as excited.
Don Smith, director of public affairs for the health plan, said the program works in partnership with several universities across the Mountain State.
“The Health Plan has been a leader in this field with this program in partnership with Marshall University, West Virginia University and now the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine,” Smith said.
