The Budget Reconciliation Act (the “big, beautiful bill”), passed in July, called for some changes in health care educational student loan programs that will adversely affect the number of health care professionals in certain fields, some of which are already very short staffed, such as nursing. 

It calls for the removal of a number of professions from the list of occupations that qualify for student loan assistance. Notably absent from the list of professions that qualify are nursing, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, physical therapists and social workers.

These changes are scheduled to be implemented by the Department of Education starting July 1, 2026. We already have a shortage of nurses, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, especially in rural areas. 

Should this come to pass, our hospitals and medical offices, currently having great difficulty finding workers in these professions, would find it even harder. How many of us, either routinely or occasionally, experience significant difficulty in getting an appointment with our primary care health provider? 

We can make a difference. Contact our members of Congress to make them aware of this situation, letting them know how it will make it harder for talented Mainers of modest means to enter these life-saving professions, and how we need more well-trained medical personnel in these professions, not fewer, and that this is where the federal government can actually make our lives better, and healthier. Don’t let the Department of Education kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

Bob Lodato
Charleston