Not What the Doctor Ordered: GOP Budget Bill Could Limit Borrowing Options

A budget bill that just passed the Senate includes provisions that would limit the amount graduate students can borrow in federal student loans. This could send medical students and others with high graduate school costs to the private student loan market to finance their education.

With a few Republican defections, the bill narrowly passed on Tuesday thanks to Vice President JD Vance’s vote in favor. The legislation now heads back to the House of Representatives for approval before it can be signed into law by President Donald Trump, who has targeted July 4 as a deadline.

Under the current proposal, annual and lifetime limits would return, leaving many graduate students with education costs that could no longer be covered by federal student loans. According to Turner, when adjusted for inflation, the limits outlined in the Senate resolution would be even lower than pre-2006 levels.

Suzanne Ortega, president of the Council of Graduate Schools, says the proposal poses a challenge to both students and universities. Students may need to find alternative ways to finance their education, and universities may have to adjust their programs to better accommodate students’ funding challenges.

“To be very honest, I think people are just starting to really think through the implications … as they think it through, it’s with horror,” says Ortega.

She adds that, for prospective students, the new reality will be taking out private loans or simply not pursuing the degree – potentially affecting enrollment numbers and causing schools to cut programs. “And to what consequence for local communities, for individuals, for industries that are affected by a constriction in the pipeline into the workforce?” asks Ortega.