physician assistants

New federal student loan rules take effect, reducing repayment options and capping graduate and professional student borrowing at $100,000 and $200,000, respectively. A federal judge temporarily blocked part of the rule affecting healthcare professionals like nurse practitioners, citing potential workforce impacts. The changes, derived from a Republican tax law, require schools to demonstrate graduate earnings to maintain federal loan access.

The Department of Education's new student loan caps under the RISE rules allocate higher borrowing limits for chiropractic degrees ($50,000) compared to critical health care professions like nurse practitioners and physician assistants ($20,500). A lawsuit by the American Nurses Association and others highlights the policy's prioritization of chiropractic care over primary and rural health care needs.

Strict new federal student loan caps for physician assistants, limiting annual borrowing to $20,500, are deterring would-be trainees as the amount is less than half the median annual cost of a PA program. Advocates representing physician assistants have condemned the policy change.