http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/11/investigation-reveals-widespread-double-dipping-nih-program-pay-school-debt

Joshua Bauml, a University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) oncologist, received welcome news last year: He had won a coveted spot in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Loan Repayment Program (LRP). Since 1988, the program has aimed to keep promising young biomedical scientists in academic research by helping repay school loans that can run up to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Without it, supporters say, many of these researchers might have chosen lucrative slots at pharmaceutical companies or in private practice.

Bauml, who finished medical school in 2008, says he will get $75,000 in tax-free loan repayments during his first two LRP years and hopes a renewal will further pay down his debt. He also became a program "ambassador"—a model of success who counsels applicants.