- Star Grassroots Advocates
- On April 28, the House Education and Workforce Committee unveiled a proposal to eliminate the Grad PLUS loan program and impose new, restrictive borrowing caps on federal Stafford loans for graduate borrowers, including PA students. Thank you to the 807 advocates who mobilized quickly to oppose this proposal and sent over 2,416 messages to their representatives through PAEA’s Grassroots Action Network campaign as of May 1.
- Advancing PAEA’s Advocacy Agenda
- On April 9, PAEA submitted outside witness testimony to the House Labor-HHS subcommittee requesting:
- $1.51 billion for Title VII and Title VIII programs,
- $98 million for Primary Care Training and Enhancement (PCTE) grants,
- $86 million for Area Health Education Centers (AHECs), and
- $50 million for the Mental and Substance Use Disorder Workforce Training Demonstration program administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
- On April 25, PAEA along with hundreds of other coalitions and organizations, submitted a letter calling on House and Senate appropriators to reject proposed cuts outlined in a leaked 64-page HHS Fiscal Year 2026 Discretionary Budget passback. The passback is a draft budget document for HHS, which reflects the President’s FY 2026 budget priorities and proposes a 30% cut to HHS and elimination of most Title VII and Title VIII programs.
- On April 9, PAEA submitted outside witness testimony to the House Labor-HHS subcommittee requesting:
- Health Care News in Washington
- On April 1, the Department of Health and Human Services laid off roughly 10,000 employees. The administrative action is part of Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s commitment to restructuring federal health agencies and will impact a wide range of critical public health functions.
- On April 10, the House passed the Senate’s latest version of a budget resolution to unlock the budget reconciliation process. The resolution gives broad instructions to help committees determine the specific details that will be included in the final reconciliation package.
- Opportunities for Action
- Your voice matters in advocating for legislation that will positively impact the future of PA education and address healthcare disparities in underserved communities. Please contact your elected officials in Congress and urge them to support the Primary Care Team Education Centers Act.
- To decrease disparities in access to care and ensure there are enough providers to meet patient demand nationwide, reach out to your elected representatives today to advocate for increased funding for all Title VII health workforce development programs for fiscal year 2026.
- If you are committed to improving PA education as well as access to care for vulnerable patients, contact your elected representatives in Congress and tell them to support the Rural Health Preceptor Tax Fairness Act.
- As we face the impending expiration of the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) mandatory authorization, we need your help to fight for solutions that safeguard against growing workforce shortages. Please contact your representatives today to urge them to preserve the current NHSC pipeline and field strength through a robust mandatory funding level.
- PA students deserve access to borrowing options that empower them to address growing health workforce shortages and provide quality patient care without sacrificing their financial health after graduation. Please contact your elected officials in Congress and urge them to oppose the elimination of Grad PLUS as part of any future legislative proposal or budget reconciliation process.
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