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Professional Tier Student Loan Limits

H.R. 1 eliminated the Grad PLUS loan program, which previously allowed students to borrow up to the full cost of attendance and established two federal borrowing tiers: graduate programs ($20,500 per year/$100,000 aggregate) and professional programs ($50,000 per year/$200,000 aggregate). To implement the law, the Department of Education’s (ED) negotiated rulemaking process produced a definition of “professional program” that excludes PAs and many other healthcare professionals from the appropriately higher “professional” loan limits, and instead relegates them to lower “graduate” limits. The Department's final rule would cause PA schools to become unaffordable for many prospective students, lead to major disruptions in the healthcare workforce pipeline, and contradicts Congressional intent.

In a major victory for PA Students and the profession, a federal court has granted preliminary relief in AAPA and PAEA’s legal challenge to the Department of Education’s student loan rule. After hearing arguments from AAPA and PAEA in June, the court issued a decision temporarily blocking the Department of Education from implementing parts of its definition of “professional degree” that were not based on the law Congress enacted while the case proceeds. 

As a result, the portion of the rule excluding PAs from higher loan caps will not go into effect on July 1.  In its ruling, the court recognized that the Department of Education’s rule would cause irreparable harm to PA Students, programs, and the healthcare workforce–and that it is likely inconsistent with the law. This ruling provides immediate relief after months of uncertainty for PA students.


MAPA fully supports the AAPA’s and PAEA’s campaign to get the definition of a “professional program” to include PAs. To date, here is where AAPA’s advocacy is at so far in response to the student loan issue:

 

  • 2,000+ public comments submitted through AAPA’s Action Center

  • 42,000 petition signatures

  • 4,500 survey participants

  • 130+ meetings with congressional offices

  • Supporting the Professional Student Degree Act (HR 6718)

  • AAPA and PAEA federal lawsuit filed, injunction granted

  • Our State Attorney General, Dana Nessel, is also suing the Trump Administration to stop the implementation of the new rule

 

If you are passionate about this issue, here is the action page to make your voice heard: https://www.votervoice.net/AAPAAdvocacy/Campaigns/132357/Respond

Mike White, PA-C

Immediate Past President