ALEXANDRIA, VA. -- Physical therapists who practice in areas suffering healthcare provider shortages could become eligible for student loan debt relief, according to a Feb. 20 press release from the American Physical Therapy Association. Representatives Marion Berry (D-AR 1st District) and Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO 8th District) led a bipartisan group of representatives in sponsoring the Physical Therapist Student Loan Repayment Eligibility Act (HR 1134). The bill proposes to make physical therapists who practice in areas with a shortage of health professionals eligible for student loan repayment assistance under the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program.