Encompass Health Tuition Reimbursement: Online Degrees for Encompass Health Employees

Consider a Physical Therapist Assistant at Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Austin, Texas. She has worked as a PTA for four years across two Encompass Health facilities, completed her PTA associate’s degree before joining Encompass, and now wants to pursue her Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree to advance to the licensed PT role. The DPT program she is considering at the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences runs approximately $25,000 to $35,000 per year over three years. Under Encompass Health’s tuition reimbursement program, her pre-approved job-related coursework can capture up to $5,250 per year in Section 127 tax-free reimbursement, supporting approximately 15% to 20% of annual program cost. The remainder she finances through federal loans (the DPT degree typically qualifies for the higher graduate loan limits), modest personal savings, and possibly a per-diem clinical work arrangement during program enrollment to maintain Encompass Health employment continuity.

Her scenario captures the specific workforce reality of Encompass Health that distinguishes it from acute-care hospital systems most healthcare tuition program guides focus on. Encompass Health is the largest U.S. operator of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals (IRFs), with 161 plus rehabilitation hospitals across 37 states post the 2022 spinoff of the home health and hospice business as Enhabit Inc. The workforce composition reflects this rehab focus: substantial concentrations of Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech-Language Pathologists, Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurses, and supporting clinical staff alongside the standard hospital nursing and clinical operations workforce. The tuition program design reflects the workforce composition with explicit support for therapy career laddering, specialty rehab certifications, and the multi-credential pathways typical in post-acute rehab careers. This guide covers how the program actually works in 2026, how it supports the distinct therapy and rehab nursing credential pathways, how the OBBBA federal tax changes affect Encompass employees alongside all Section 127 program participants, and how the program compares to peer healthcare employers. For broader context on returning to school as a working adult, our complete guide to earning an accredited online degree as an adult learner covers the foundational decisions.

The Encompass Health Tuition Program at a Glance

Per , the integrated tuition program includes:

Program Component	How It Works at Encompass Health
Annual cap	Up to $5,250 per calendar year (Section 127 tax-free baseline) for tuition and required educational expenses
Pre-approval workflow	Courses must be pre-approved as job-related before enrollment; reimbursement available after course completion with passing grade
Eligibility breadth	Both full-time AND part-time employees eligible for tuition reimbursement AND continuing education (notable breadth vs. peer healthcare programs that restrict to full-time)
Continuing education coverage	Seminars, conferences, and job-related courses contributing to professional development are eligible alongside formal degree program coursework
Tenure / clawback structure	12-month post-benefit employment commitment required (clawback rather than upfront tenure requirement); reimbursement received must be repaid if employee leaves within 12 months of program completion
Custom career development plans	Each employee develops a career development plan with manager support that maps credential pursuit to career progression goals
Therapy Career Ladder integration	Formal internal advancement structure tied to credentials (PTA to PT, OTA to OT, specialty certification progression); tuition program funds the credential pursuit
Tax treatment	First $5,250 per calendar year is tax-free under Section 127; the program matches the federal tax-free ceiling exactly
PSLF eligibility	Not eligible (Encompass Health is for-profit publicly-traded NYSE: EHC, not 501(c)(3))

Why the IRF Focus Affects Program Design

Encompass Health’s pure inpatient rehabilitation facility focus, particularly after the 2022 Enhabit spinoff that separated home health and hospice operations, makes the firm structurally distinct from acute-care hospital systems in three concrete ways that affect tuition program use.

Therapy Workforce Density

At a typical Encompass Health rehabilitation hospital, the therapy workforce (PT, PTA, OT, OTA, SLP) represents a substantially larger share of total clinical staff than at acute-care hospitals. A 50-bed Encompass rehab hospital typically employs 15 to 25 PTs and PTAs, 8 to 12 OTs and OTAs, and 3 to 5 SLPs alongside the nursing and physician workforce. By contrast, a 50-bed acute-care hospital would typically employ 2 to 5 therapists across all disciplines combined. The therapy workforce density means the tuition program at Encompass receives substantial use for PT/OT/SLP credential pursuit, where peer acute-care programs see this use only occasionally.

Therapy Career Ladder Structure

Encompass Health operates a formal Therapy Career Ladder that ties credential progression to internal advancement and compensation. The ladder commonly includes PTA to PT progression (associate’s to clinical doctorate), OTA to OT progression (associate’s to master’s or clinical doctorate), and specialty certification progression for licensed PTs and OTs (NCS, GCS, OCS, PCS, and similar credentials). on PT credentialing, the DPT degree requires approximately 80 to 100 credit hours of graduate work plus clinical rotations, typically across three years for accelerated programs and four years for more traditional formats. The tuition program supports the PTA to PT transition through partial annual coverage of the multi-year credential cost.

Specialty Rehab Certifications

Beyond formal degree work, the rehab workforce relies on specialty certifications that the tuition program supports through pre-approved professional development. on the Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurse (CRRN) credential, the certification examination and continuing education requirements represent the gold-standard rehab nursing credential and qualify for tuition program support as job-related professional development.

Other commonly pursued specialty rehab certifications include:

Neurologic Clinical Specialist (NCS) for PTs working with stroke, traumatic brain injury, and other neurologic conditions. Examination fees and preparation materials covered under the tuition program.
Geriatric Clinical Specialist (GCS) for PTs and OTs working with older adult rehab patient populations. The credential supports senior clinician advancement on the Therapy Career Ladder.
Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS) and Certified Brain Injury Specialist Trainer (CBIST) for clinicians working with traumatic brain injury rehab. Credentialing and continuing education covered under the program.
Orthopaedic Clinical Specialist (OCS) for PTs working with orthopaedic rehab populations. The credential supports specialty advancement within Encompass and at peer rehab employers.

Part-Time Eligibility: A Distinguishing Feature

Encompass Health’s tuition program extends to both full-time and part-time employees for both formal tuition reimbursement and continuing education coverage. The eligibility breadth is notable among healthcare tuition programs, where many peer employers restrict tuition reimbursement to full-time employees only or offer reduced caps for part-time staff.

Why Part-Time Eligibility Is Significant in the Rehab Workforce

Rehab clinical workforce commonly includes substantial part-time concentrations for three reasons:

Per-diem and PRN scheduling. Therapists and rehab nurses often work part-time or per-diem schedules across multiple facilities or in combination with private practice, university teaching, or other clinical settings. Part-time tuition eligibility supports credential pursuit for this workforce segment that peer programs exclude.
Returning-to-practice clinicians. Therapists and nurses returning to clinical practice after career breaks (parenting, other career pursuits, retirement transitions) often work part-time initially while reestablishing credentials and updating clinical skills. Part-time tuition eligibility supports the credential refresh and certification renewal these clinicians need.
Student clinicians. PTAs pursuing PT degrees and OTAs pursuing OT degrees often shift to part-time clinical work while in graduate school. Encompass Health’s part-time tuition eligibility supports the part-time-clinical-while-in-school pattern that the Therapy Career Ladder advancement actively encourages.

The 12-Month Clawback Structure

Encompass Health’s tuition program uses a 12-month post-benefit employment commitment rather than the upfront tenure requirement some peer programs apply. Under this structure, employees can access the program from relatively early in their Encompass tenure, but must remain employed at Encompass for 12 months after receiving tuition reimbursement (or repay the reimbursed amount upon early departure).

Practical Implications

Three practical implications follow from the clawback design:

Front-loaded program access. New Encompass employees can begin using the tuition program sooner than at peer employers requiring 1-year or 2-year upfront tenure. This is particularly valuable for new hires bringing in-progress credential pursuits from previous employers.
Multi-year planning works differently. Employees planning long Encompass tenures benefit fully from the program. Employees considering shorter Encompass tenures should plan reimbursement timing carefully to avoid clawback exposure on departure.
Cumulative obligation tracking. Each reimbursement creates a separate 12-month clawback window. Employees using the program every year accumulate overlapping clawback obligations that resolve sequentially as each annual reimbursement passes its 12-month mark.

Strategic Use of the Clawback Structure

For Encompass employees planning multi-year credential pursuits, the 12-month clawback creates a natural alignment with annual program use. Submitting one reimbursement request per calendar year, completing the 12-month commitment, and then submitting the next year’s request creates a continuous program use pattern with clean clawback resolution. For employees front-loading multiple courses in a single year (e.g., completing a credential program quickly), the clawback obligations stack and require longer continuous tenure to fully resolve.

Section 127 Framework and the 2025 OBBBA Changes

Under Section 127 of the Internal Revenue Code, employer-provided educational assistance up to $5,250 per calendar year is excluded from the employee’s taxable income. Encompass Health’s program caps at the Section 127 ceiling exactly, providing the full tax-free benefit without above-cap taxable consequences. The structure is the most common cap design among U.S. healthcare employers.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into federal law in July 2025, made two changes to the Section 127 framework that affect Encompass Health employees alongside employees at all other U.S. employers running Section 127 programs:

Employer student loan repayment under Section 127 is now permanently tax-free (the expansion was previously set to expire December 31, 2025). Encompass Health does not currently document a standalone student loan repayment benefit; if added in the future, the post-OBBBA permanent framework would apply.
The $5,250 Section 127 cap is indexed to inflation starting for tax years after December 31, 2026. The 2026 cap remains $5,250; from 2027 forward, the cap will gradually increase based on annual inflation adjustments. Since Encompass caps the program at the Section 127 ceiling, the inflation indexing automatically increases the program’s annual cap beginning in tax year 2027 without requiring Encompass to make any program design changes.

Online Programs That Fit Encompass Health’s Structure

Programs available through Encompass Health’s tuition reimbursement span the broad set of accredited online undergraduate, graduate, and certificate programs that align with rehab clinical workforce credentialing. The most common targets for Encompass employees:

Rehab Nursing Programs

For Encompass nursing staff pursuing the BSN credential or advancing toward specialty rehab nursing certifications, RN-to-BSN online programs are common targets. Our list of best online RN to BSN programs for working nurses covers CCNE-accredited options. For nurses considering what the RN-to-BSN online experience actually entails, our companion guide on RN to BSN online: what to expect covers the structural elements of the program format. For Encompass nurses in Texas (the firm operates substantial Texas facilities), our recent Texas nursing programs online analysis covers the Texas Board of Nursing approval framework, compact licensure considerations, and the Hazlewood Act tuition benefit (for veterans) that affects Texas-based nurse credential pursuit.

Advanced Practice Nursing

For Encompass nurses pursuing advanced practice credentials such as Family Nurse Practitioner certification, our online BSN to MSN Family Nurse Practitioner programs decision framework covers the broader landscape. While FNP credentialing is more common in primary care and outpatient settings than inpatient rehab, some Encompass facilities employ nurse practitioners in physiatry support and discharge planning roles.

Healthcare Administration

For Encompass clinical managers, hospital administrators, and operations leaders, online healthcare administration master’s programs support advancement into senior facility leadership and corporate operations roles. Our list of best online healthcare administration degrees covers CAHME-accredited and other strong online MHA, MS in Health Administration, and related programs.

Therapy Credentials

For Encompass therapy workforce members pursuing PT, OT, and SLP credential advancement, online and hybrid program options include:

Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) hybrid programs. Most DPT programs require substantial in-person clinical rotations but now often include hybrid online didactic components. University of St. Augustine, Northeastern, USA, and several other programs offer flexible formats for working PTAs pursuing PT licensure.
Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) and Occupational Therapy Doctorate (OTD) programs. Similar hybrid structure to DPT, with online didactic and in-person clinical components.
Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology programs. CAA-accredited online and hybrid SLP master’s programs have expanded substantially in recent years, supporting SLP credential pursuit while continuing clinical work.

Adult Learner Resources

For Encompass employees returning to school after a multi-year period in clinical practice, our guide on returning to college after 30 covers the broader timing and decision framework, and how adult students can graduate with minimal debt covers the strategy framework for combining employer benefits, federal aid, and program selection to minimize out-of-pocket cost across multi-year credential pursuits.

How Encompass Health Compares to Peer Healthcare Employers

Among major U.S. healthcare employers, Encompass Health’s tuition program sits at the Section 127 standard cap with distinctive part-time eligibility and Therapy Career Ladder integration. The comparison below positions Encompass against peer healthcare employers, including our coverage of DaVita’s tuition assistance program for dialysis teammates as a structurally analogous specialty healthcare employer (both DaVita and Encompass focus on specialized post-acute or chronic care workforce rather than general acute-care).

Feature	Encompass Health	DaVita	Advocate Health	LifePoint Health
Annual cap	$5,250	Typically Sec 127	$5,250 + nursing $7,500	Tuition.io opaque
Part-time eligible	Yes	Yes	Yes	Varies
Workforce focus	Pure IRF rehab	Dialysis	Acute + ambulatory	Community rural acute
Therapy workforce density	Very high (PT/OT/SLP)	Limited	Moderate	Limited
Tenure structure	12-month clawback	Standard	Day-one eligible	Standard
Career ladder integration	Therapy Career Ladder	Clinical ladder	Standard	Standard
PSLF eligibility	Not eligible (for-profit)	Not eligible (for-profit)	Eligible (501c3)	Not eligible (for-profit)

Where Encompass’s Program Is Distinctive

Pure IRF workforce focus and Therapy Career Ladder integration. No peer healthcare employer combines this rehab-specific workforce density with this formal credential-to-advancement ladder structure.
Part-time eligibility for both tuition and continuing education. The breadth supports the per-diem and PRN scheduling patterns common in rehab clinical workforce.
12-month post-benefit clawback rather than upfront tenure. New hires can access the program sooner than at most peer employers.

Where Peer Programs May Be Stronger

Advocate Health’s nursing tier ($7,500 for clinical nursing roles) and day-one eligibility provide higher caps for nursing workforce specifically.
Non-profit healthcare employers (Mayo, Cleveland Clinic, MGB, Advocate, Kaiser) provide PSLF eligibility that Encompass’s for-profit structure doesn’t support. For nurses and therapists with substantial federal student loan portfolios, PSLF eligibility at non-profit peer employers can substantially exceed the value of Encompass’s program.
Acute-care peer programs at substantially larger systems (HCA, Advocate, HMH) provide broader internal mobility options across general medical, surgical, and specialty units that Encompass’s rehab-focused structure doesn’t replicate.

Encompass Health U.S. Site Locations

Encompass Health operates 161 plus inpatient rehabilitation hospitals across 37 states. The geographic distribution affects local higher-education access and state-tax economics for any program use that interacts with state income tax frameworks.

Corporate Headquarters: Birmingham, Alabama

Encompass Health is headquartered at 9001 Liberty Parkway in Birmingham, Alabama. Local higher-education access for Birmingham-based corporate employees includes the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), Samford University, Birmingham-Southern College, and various University of Alabama system online options. Alabama has a progressive state income tax with rates up to 5%, affecting after-tax economics for any reimbursement portion above Section 127 (though Encompass’s cap design means the above-cap question doesn’t generally apply at this employer).

Major Operating Markets

Encompass Health’s largest operating markets by hospital count include:

Texas (multiple hospitals across Austin, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio, and other metros). No state income tax provides favorable after-tax economics for any program use.
Florida (multiple hospitals across Tampa, Miami, Orlando, and other metros). No state income tax.
California (multiple hospitals). High state income tax up to 13.3%.
Pennsylvania, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and several other states with substantial hospital concentrations.

Local Higher Education Context

The broad 37-state geographic distribution means Encompass employees have access to a wide range of local higher-education options. The most program-relevant institutional types are:

Public university online programs at flagship state universities (UT Austin, University of Florida, UNC, Penn State, UAB, others). These typically offer in-state tuition rates for employees residing in the relevant state.
Online-first universities (Western Governors University, Southern New Hampshire University, Purdue Global, University of Arizona Global Campus). These accept students from any state and offer programs designed for working adult learners.
Specialized therapy programs at universities with strong rehab science programs (Northeastern, USC, Pittsburgh, Drexel, others) that offer flexible online or hybrid DPT, OTD, and MS-SLP options.

The CRRN Credential: Rehab Nursing’s Distinctive Pathway

Among the specialty certifications the tuition program supports, the Certified Rehabilitation Registered Nurse (CRRN) credential occupies a specific position in the rehab clinical workforce. Unlike acute-care nursing where the BSN-to-MSN pathway dominates senior clinical progression, rehab nursing relies heavily on the CRRN as the gold-standard specialty credential for experienced rehab nurses regardless of degree pathway.

Requirements and Preparation

The CRRN credential, administered by the Rehabilitation Nursing Certification Board, requires:

Current unrestricted RN licensure in the U.S. or Canada.
Minimum two years of practice as a registered nurse in rehabilitation nursing within the prior five years, OR one year of practice plus completion of an advanced course of study in rehabilitation nursing.
Successful passage of the CRRN examination, which covers rehabilitation nursing models and theories, functional health patterns, rehabilitation across the lifespan, the legislative and economic environment of rehab nursing, and professional ethics.
Continuing education for renewal every five years (60 contact hours of approved continuing education or recertification examination).

Why Encompass’s Program Supports CRRN Pursuit Effectively

Three program features align well with the CRRN credential pathway:

Continuing education coverage. The tuition program covers seminars, conferences, and job-related courses that count toward CRRN continuing education renewal requirements. RN nurses can use the program for both initial credential preparation and ongoing renewal continuing education.
Part-time eligibility. The CRRN credential pursuit often occurs at career stages where nurses work part-time or per-diem schedules; the part-time eligibility supports credential pursuit at this workforce segment.
Examination fee coverage. The CRRN examination fee and preparation materials qualify as pre-approved job-related education expenses under the tuition program structure.

Multi-Year Therapy Career Planning at Encompass

The Therapy Career Ladder structure rewards intentional multi-year credential planning. Two representative vignettes illustrate effective program use across rehab therapy career arcs.

Vignette 1: PTA-to-PT Transition

A Physical Therapist Assistant at Encompass with three years of PTA tenure decides to pursue the PT license through a hybrid Doctor of Physical Therapy program. The program runs three years at approximately $25,000 per year tuition (total program cost approximately $75,000). The employee maintains part-time PTA work at Encompass throughout the program. Multi-year program use:

Year 1 (Pre-DPT): The employee completes prerequisite coursework not covered by her PTA degree (typically advanced anatomy, physiology, exercise science topics). Annual tuition program use approximately $3,500 to $5,250 covering these prerequisites.
Years 2-4 (DPT enrollment): The employee uses the full $5,250 annual cap each year, covering approximately 20% of annual DPT program cost. The remainder is financed through federal graduate loans and personal savings.
Total Encompass program contribution over the multi-year pathway: approximately $20,000 to $22,000 (4 years at maximum cap utilization). Total credential pathway cost approximately $80,000 to $85,000. Encompass coverage proportion: roughly 25% of total cost.
Post-DPT: The employee transitions to PT role on the Therapy Career Ladder, captures compensation advancement, and can continue using the program for specialty PT certifications (NCS, GCS, OCS) over subsequent years.

Vignette 2: BSN-Completion-Plus-CRRN Path

An Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN)-prepared RN at Encompass with eight years of rehab nursing tenure decides to complete her BSN and earn the CRRN credential. The combined pathway:

Year 1: BSN completion via online RN-to-BSN program. Tuition approximately $8,000 to $12,000 for one-year accelerated completion. Encompass program covers $5,250 (the Section 127 cap). Out-of-pocket cost approximately $3,000 to $7,000 depending on program selection.
Year 2: CRRN credential preparation through review courses and examination. Total cost approximately $1,500 to $2,500. Fully covered within the annual program cap with substantial unused capacity.
Year 3 onward: CRRN renewal continuing education covered through the program every five years; ongoing professional development covered annually.
Total credential portfolio cost across the BSN-plus-CRRN pathway: approximately $10,000 to $15,000. Encompass program contribution: approximately $7,000 to $8,000 across the two-year credential pursuit. Out-of-pocket cost: $3,000 to $7,000.

The 2022 Enhabit Spinoff: Current Workforce Identity

Encompass Health’s current pure inpatient rehabilitation focus reflects the July 2022 spinoff of the home health and hospice operations as Enhabit, Inc. (NYSE: EHAB). Pre-spinoff, Encompass Health operated both IRF hospitals and the home health and hospice business as integrated lines, with a combined workforce of approximately 47,000 employees. Post-spinoff, the two firms operate independently: Encompass Health (NYSE: EHC) maintains the IRF hospital network with approximately 25,000 employees, and Enhabit (NYSE: EHAB) operates the home health and hospice business with the remaining workforce.

For current Encompass Health employees, the post-spinoff workforce identity affects tuition program use in two ways:

Sharpened workforce focus. The pure IRF focus means the tuition program design and the Therapy Career Ladder structure align more tightly with the inpatient rehab workforce than during the pre-spinoff period when home health and hospice workforce considerations also influenced program design.
Career mobility implications. Encompass employees considering moves between inpatient rehab and home health or hospice settings now face a between-employer transition rather than an internal between-business-line move. The tuition program supports credential pursuit at Encompass; movement to Enhabit (or to peer home health/hospice employers) follows external job change patterns rather than internal mobility.

Questions to Resolve Before You Enroll

Five questions to work through before submitting your first Encompass Health tuition reimbursement request:

Does your target program align with your job-related criteria as your manager and HR business partner would interpret it? The pre-approval workflow means verifying alignment before enrollment avoids approval friction after committing tuition payments.
Are you planning multi-year program participation with intentional annual cap utilization, or front-loading multiple courses in a single year? The 12-month clawback structure creates different implications depending on which pattern you choose.
If you’re a part-time employee, have you verified your specific eligibility (the program is broadly available to part-time staff, but per-diem and PRN scheduling can affect eligibility classification)?
Are you pursuing credentials that align with the Therapy Career Ladder or another formal Encompass advancement structure? Programs that align with internal career advancement receive smoother approval and create clearer career mobility outcomes.
Are you tracking the OBBBA inflation-indexing change to the Section 127 cap starting tax year 2027 in your multi-year program planning? Encompass’s cap design means the program automatically benefits from the inflation indexing in future years.

Putting It Together

Encompass Health’s tuition reimbursement program is designed around the workforce composition of inpatient rehabilitation hospitals. The Section 127 standard cap at $5,250 per year, the part-time eligibility breadth, the 12-month post-benefit clawback structure, the Therapy Career Ladder integration, and the support for both formal degree programs and specialty rehab certifications combine to create a program structure well-aligned with the rehab clinical workforce. Encompass employees pursuing the PTA-to-PT transition, OTA-to-OT transition, BSN completion, advanced practice nursing, specialty rehab certifications (CRRN, NCS, GCS, CBIS, OCS), or healthcare administration credentials can all use the program effectively with multi-year planning. Our complete guide to earning an accredited online degree as an adult learner covers the foundational decisions for any adult learner; the Encompass-specific elements above shape how those decisions play out for current employees across the firm’s 161 plus hospital network.

Three things to do first if you’re an Encompass Health employee considering an online degree or credential:

Develop your custom career development plan with your manager. The plan should map your target credential to your specific Encompass career trajectory and any internal advancement structure (Therapy Career Ladder, clinical management track, corporate operations track). Manager alignment streamlines pre-approval and creates clear advancement pathways post-completion.
Plan your multi-year program use around the 12-month clawback structure. Annual cap utilization with sequential clawback resolution works smoothly. Front-loading multiple courses in a single year creates stacked clawback obligations that require longer continuous tenure to resolve.
Match your program selection to your credential goal and the Therapy Career Ladder or other internal structure. PTA-to-PT and OTA-to-OT transitions follow specific program format requirements (CAPTE-accredited DPT for PT, ACOTE-accredited OT for OT). BSN completion for rehab nursing follows CCNE-accredited program standards. Specialty rehab certifications follow specific credentialing body requirements.

Find an Online Program That Fits Encompass Health’s Education Benefits

Selecting an online program that fits Encompass Health’s $5,250 annual cap, aligns with the Therapy Career Ladder or other internal advancement structure, and supports your specific credential goal is the central decision. Our Online Program Explorer lets you filter accredited online programs by tuition cost, accreditation type, time-to-completion, and career outcome. Filter for programs at or below $5,250 in annual tuition to fit Encompass’s Section 127 cap exactly, or use the discipline filter to find programs in nursing, healthcare administration, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech-language pathology, and the other fields Encompass employees most commonly pursue across the firm’s 161 plus hospital network.

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