National Nurses United (NNU) today condemned the Trump administration’s proposed rule, posted for a 30-day public comment period from Feb. 2 to Mar. 2, outlining the planned exclusion of graduate nursing students from professional loans, which have higher limits than those for other graduate students. The union issued the following statement:

Nurses across the country will not stand for this attack on the nursing profession, students, working-class people, and women. NNU has already been outspoken on this issue, and now that the rule is up for public comment, we will continue to make our voices heard on behalf of the countless nurses who choose to pursue graduate degrees. Making it more difficult for our women-dominated profession to advance in our careers is sexist and insulting.

H.R. 1, the Trump administration and republicans’ bill that slashed Medicaid and other public health programs to give tax breaks to billionaires, also included changes to student loan programs. This outrageous proposed rule builds on the damage done by H.R. 1 to make it harder for nurses who are pursuing graduate degrees to become nurse practitioners (NPs), certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNA), or other positions requiring an advanced degree. NPs currently provide much-needed primary care, particularly in rural and underserved areas. CRNAs are also crucial to rural healthcare, where they are the primary anesthesia providers in many areas.

Despite their critical nature, these nursing roles would not be eligible for loans at the higher limits allowed only for the Department of Education’s (DOE) specific list of “professions.” Graduate students pursuing so-called “professional degrees” are eligible for more than twice as much funding for each academic year and twice as much total funding as graduate nursing students. Without access to federal loan assistance, many women, students of color, and those from lower-income families will be forced into the private loan market, where many will not qualify for financing. Those who do qualify will be burdened with high-interest loans. Nurses with graduate degrees may also be excluded from loan forgiveness programs reserved for professional degrees. By making it more difficult for nurses to advance in their careers, this proposed rule would also make it more difficult to find nursing faculty with advanced degrees to teach in nursing programs. 

If the Trump administration truly wanted to support nurses, it would be working to improve working conditions, expand education opportunities, and ensure patients can get health care. Instead, this administration is making education harder to access, and cutting health care for those who need it most. 

NNU is also concerned how this could contribute to the nationwide nurse staffing crisis, commonly and mistakenly called a “nursing shortage.” The hospital industry has created a staffing crisis by refusing to staff hospitals appropriately and creating conditions that are unsafe for patients and nurses. Based on available data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on employment and National Council of State Boards of Nursing on licenses, there are over a million actively licensed RNs not working at the bedside.

Shutting down nurses’ access to public financial resources to seek higher education will only further contribute to forces driving nurses away from the bedside. NNU is fighting this proposed rule, and we encourage nurses and allied organizations across the nation to also submit your comments here by March 2, 2026.

National Nurses United is the largest and fastest-growing union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States with more than 225,000 members nationwide. NNU affiliates include California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee, DC Nurses Association, Michigan Nurses Association, Minnesota Nurses Association, and New York State Nurses Association.