A federal judge has halted part of a Trump administration rule that would have sharply limited federal student loans for nursing students and those pursuing certain other professional degrees in ways that critics said would cause shortages in those fields.
The preliminary injunction, issued late Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell, stems from a lawsuit filed in May by eight trade organizations, including the American Association of Nurse Practitioners and the PA Education Association, over borrowing caps set to take effect July 1.
The caps are a feature of the One Big Beautiful Bill that President Donald Trump signed into law last summer. They are based on whether students are pursuing a degree in a “professional” or “graduate” program.
Before the rule, students in either category could borrow up to the full cost of attendance. Congressional Republicans wanted to allow students in professional programs to borrow up to $50,000 a year and $200,000 total, while those in graduate programs will face annual limits of $20,500 and a lifetime limit of $100,000.
The law says a degree program is considered “professional” if it generally requires licensure, requires skills beyond those needed to receive a bachelor’s degree and signifies completion of academic requirements for beginning practice in a given profession.
But the Education Department issued a rule restricting that category to 11 programs — clinical psychology, dentistry, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, pharmacy, podiatry, theology and veterinary medicine — most of which were listed as examples in the bill.
The Trump administration and conservative lawmakers have praised the graduate loan limits as a common-sense way to rein in student debt. Graduate programs account for 40 percent of annual student loan borrowing. While there is bipartisan agreement that debt loads are unsustainable, liberal lawmakers still fear that restrictions on federal lending will harm students who need the most help.
Nursing groups have been the most vocal opposition to the changes because of the exclusion of graduate nursing degrees from the professional category. They say the restrictions could shrink the pool of people who pursue degrees needed to teach the next generation of nurses. The Education Department has countered that 95 percent of nursing students borrow below the annual loan limit and would not be affected by the new caps.
The trade associations’ lawsuit, filed in federal court in D.C., argues that the department exceeded its authority by adding more stringent requirements to the definition of a professional degree, including that the degree must not lead to a career “supervised by another professional” who has more “education, training and qualifications.”
The court agreed.
“Congress did not direct the Department to evaluate and update the regulatory definition,” Howell said in her ruling, which set the definition aside while litigation continues. “By adopting the preexisting definition as it was in effect on a specific date, Congress removed any discretionary authority the Department may have had to narrow the definition for the purpose of determining federal loan caps.”
The judge’s ruling effectively forced the department to use the law’s original criteria for professional programs, but it does not preclude the administration from moving forward with the loan limits.
Education Department spokesperson Ellen Keast said the agency is “reviewing the order and will take appropriate action.”
In a joint statement, the American Academy of Physician Associates and the PA Education Association called the injunction an important step forward.
“The court recognized that the harm caused by this rule is too significant to ignore,” the groups wrote. “The broad nonpartisan outcry against this rule underscores that supporting the PA workforce should not be a political issue — it is a healthcare issue.”
Health care groups have argued that the new loan limits will worsen workforce shortages and make it harder for patients, especially those in rural and underserved communities, to access health care. They say the caps will result in a decline in enrollment of low-income and first-generation college students who can’t easily afford graduate school and may not qualify for private loans.
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