Nursing graduate degrees designated “professional” — for now
Injunction issued in one lawsuit; ANA lawsuit continues to move through the courts
Nurses seeking loans to pay for their advanced educations have gotten a temporary reprieve from harsh loan caps the U.S. Department of Education said would go into effect July 1.
On June 25, a federal judge in Washington, D.C., blocked implementation of the rule that excluded nursing programs from so-called “professional” degree caps, meaning that nurses in graduate programs can take out up to $200,000 in aggregate for advanced degrees rather than the $100,000 limit the new rule would have imposed on nurses pursuing advanced degrees.
Four days later, the Department of Education responded with what it called “interim guidance,” which designates MSN, DNP, or DNAP programs as “professional degrees.” Nursing PhD students, however, were omitted from the list, threatening the nation’s supply of faculty and nurse scientists.
The June 25 preliminary relief ruling was in response to a lawsuit filed by eight organizations, including the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, filed on May 21. It was one of several lawsuits filed challenging the “professional degree” list in the new rule, including a lawsuit filed by the American Nurses Association and nine other nursing organizations on May 29. That lawsuit continues to move through the courts.
Both lawsuits are moving forward, along with a third filed on May 18 by 24 attorneys general, including Washington Attorney General Nick Brown.