Advocacy Opportunity - Support PA Students and Protect the PA Pipeline

Current and future PA students need our help!

On November 6, the Department of Education’s RISE negotiated rulemaking committee proposed new restrictions on professional student loan access under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Under OBBBA, graduate students borrowing federal loans for the first time after July 1, 2026 will be restricted to $20,500 per year and $100,000 total in federal loans, while professional students will be limited to $50,000 per year and $200,000 total. Under the Department’s proposed regulations, PA students would be excluded from the “professional” category—even though they clearly meet every element of the definition established in the law.

Responding to Restrictive Caps on PA Student Loans 

PA school is more expensive than the proposed cap – meaning that without access to sufficient federal loans, many students won’t have the means to complete their education. 

 

If finalized as currently written, this rule would take effect by July 2026, impacting future PA students’ ability to access the loans they need as soon as the next academic cycle.   

 

Here’s what you can do right away: 

• Sign and Share AAPA’s Petition: We are asking as many PAs, PA students, and aspiring PAs as possible to sign AAPA's petition to the Department of Education urging them to revise this proposal. We need a strong showing of public outcry change, so please share the petition and letter with colleagues, PA students, and aspiring PAs in your networks and encourage them to sign, too.  

 

• Share Your Personal Experience: AAPA is also collecting personal stories from those willing to share why student loans were essential to their education and what it would mean if future students could not access the funds needed to cover their training. Your voices and stories will help AAPA put a human face on this issue and show the Department what’s truly at stake for the country's workforce and the patients PAs serve.