Would-be physician assistants deterred by strict caps on US student loans

For students, a strict cap on federal student loans means they will have to seek aid elsewhere. Photograph: Boston Globe/Getty Images View image in fullscreen For students, a strict cap on federal student loans means they will have to seek aid elsewhere. Photograph: Boston Globe/Getty Images Would-be physician assistants deterred by strict caps on US student loans Advocates condemn change that caps loans at $20,500 per year – less than half median annual cost of PA program Strict new caps on federal student loans are causing would-be physician assistants to reconsider training, groups representing physician assistants said. An overhaul of the federal student loan system scheduled to go into effect 1 July strictly caps the annual amount of federal loans physician assistants can borrow to $20,500 per year – less than half the median annual cost of a PA program. Strict caps imposed by the Department of Education (DOE) come even as Health and Human Services (HHS) has bet on physician assistants to help with the rural healthcare shortages. “My credit score was a 400,” said Todd Pickard, president of the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA), a group representing more than 200,000 physician assistants nationally. He graduated in 1997. “There was nobody privately that was going to give me a dime. And my parents are not rich people, so they weren’t going to say, ‘Here’s $100,000 – take it.’” Beginning 1 July, the Republican-led One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Obbba) will end the Grad Plus federal loan program, cap federal graduate loans at $20,000 per year, and cap loans for professional education at $50,000 per year. At issue is the definition of “professional”: the DoE deemed most programs “ graduate ,” including healthcare providers such as physician assistants. The groups argue they meet criteria set by the OBBBA to be considered professional and thus should be subject to the higher loan cap. Today, the median cost of physician assistant training is $103,000 for up to 27 months of training, according to Sara Fletcher, executive director of the PA Education Association, which represents institutions that train physician assistants. In just one such example, the State University of New York (Suny) Downstate charges more than $58,000 for training for in-state students, and $113,000 for out-of-state. Physician assistants typically also rely on student loans for living expenses, since training typically requires 60-80 hours work per week. A coalition of 24 Democratic attorneys general, one non-partisan attorney general and two governors sued the administration in May over the changes, seeking a permanent injunction. In June, nursing associations, the AAPA and PAEA followed suit – seeking an immediate injunction. “We got swept up in this big net without any real analysis and decision-making,” said Pickard, speaking to the Guardian a day after a federal judge in Washington heard arguments in their case. “I think they decided they wanted to get out of