Controversial changes reportedly proposed for nursing students by the Trump administration could affect healthcare nationwide, Chicago-area nursing educators warned.
According to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the Department of Education has proposed excluding nursing from a list of “professional degree” programs as it sets out to implement several measures regarding student loans outlined in President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” —limiting the loans nursing students can access to pay for their education.
While the changes have not been independently confirmed by NBC Chicago, reports of the proposal have led to warnings and concern from Chicago-area nursing educators worried about the impact the funding cuts could have on nursing as a profession.
The Department of Education has not responded to NBC Chicago’s requests for comment.
If implemented, funding cuts will be significant for the hundreds of thousands of students studying nursing, according to Eileen Collins, dean of University of Illinois Chicago College of Nursing.
“Now student loans are being tied to that definition of a profession,” Collins said. “So, for example, if you are in medical school, or dental school or pharmacy school, you can borrow up to $50,000 a year for your education. If you are in nursing school, you can only borrow up to $20,000 for your education and many of our most advanced degrees cost significantly more than that.”
Collins also noted that the new policies could come amid a historic shortage of nurses not only in Chicago and Illinois but across the entire country.
“You are not going to have nurses to fill those shortages,” she said.
Lorna Finnegan, dean of the Loyola University School of Medicine, told NBC Chicago that she is worried the proposed change could push prospective nurses away from the field.
“To be honest with you, I am absolutely appalled. Now, with the demand for nursing outpacing the supply, this is really going to cause people who are entering the profession to reconsider,” Finnegan said.
American Nursing Association also warned such policies would reduce the number of nurses in the future, and hurt its existing members.
“Capping nurses at $100,000 isn’t going to work,” Jennifer Mensik, president of American Nurses Association said. “Why we cannot have the same amount as physicians is unfathomable.”
In a statement to Newsweek, the Department of Education said, “we’re not surprised that some institutions are crying wolf over regulations that never existed because their unlimited tuition ride on the taxpayer dime is over.”
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