Advocacy

New limits on federal student loans filled Chloe Frabotta with anxiety as she began studying in New York City to become a physician assistant.

A third federal judge has ruled that the Department of Education (ED) likely overstepped its statutory authority by narrowing access to higher federal student loan limits for professional degree programs. This update in motions in the ongoing lawsuit, which AAPA and PAEA filed in June 2026, adds momentum to efforts to protect graduate funding for PAs.

A federal judge has tossed out the Education Department’s rule that strictly limited graduate students’ access to higher federal student loan borrowing limits, a victory for universities, health-advocacy groups and others who argued the policy could stop students from earning advanced nursing degrees and pursuing other crucial professions.

A coalition of provider associations on Wednesday evening won a preliminary injunction blocking a cap on federal student loans that was set to go into effect on July 1. The case, filed in late May by six professional associations and joined over subsequent weeks by others, centered on a Department of Education final rule that would subject many advanced practice occupations to the lower of two federal borrowing caps.

NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe asks American Academy of Physician Associates President Todd Pickard about a lawsuit seeking more generous caps on student loans for PA and nursing programs.

The American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) and the PA Education Association filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleging that the Department of Education’s impending rule change on the borrowing cap for physician associate students is unlawful.

The American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) and the Physician Associates Education Association (PAEA) filed a lawsuit aimed at reversing a Department of Education regulation that the plaintiffs claim violates the Administrative Procedure Act. They are separately requesting an emergency injunction that seeks to block the rule from taking effect for PA students on July 1.

Research presented at AAPA 2026 suggests the physician associate profession can be a global, adaptable, and “trained-for-purpose” workforce that can be applied worldwide to address the international health care crisis.

In a recent legislative achievement for physician associates, Delaware has joined the growing list of states enacting reforms that drive practice modernization, with a bill newly signed to allow more PAs to serve rural communities and work under an updated title that communicates the profession to patients in alignment with the American Academy of Physician Associates.