May 01, 2025
What You Need to Know: AMA is urging the Trump administration to address delays in income-driven repayment applications and protect the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, warning that disruptions could worsen the physician shortage and limit access to care in underserved communities.
The American Medical Association (AMA) is urging the Trump administration to take immediate steps to protect and stabilize federal student loan programs essential to the medical profession. In an April 14 letter to the U.S. Department of Education and the Small Business Administration (SBA), AMA raised alarm over ongoing delays in processing income-driven repayment (IDR) applications and growing uncertainty around the future of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
While a March Executive Order from President Trump aimed to “restore” PSLF, it offered few specifics and has not resulted in any immediate changes. In the meantime, physicians are caught in a holding pattern. Although IDR applications are being accepted again, they are still not being processed—a significant barrier for borrowers trying to qualify for PSLF, which requires participation in an IDR plan. AMA warned that this processing backlog is causing “significant stress” for medical students, residents, and early-career physicians who rely on IDR to manage high levels of debt.
Adding to the confusion is the administration’s proposal to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education and shift its functions—including federal student loan servicing—to the SBA. AMA cautioned that such a transfer could disrupt an already fragile system and deter students from pursuing careers in medicine, worsening the projected shortage of 86,000 physicians by 2036.
“Federal loan programs like IDR and PSLF are lifelines for young doctors and vital to ensuring access to care in underserved communities,” said Shannon Udovic-Constant, M.D., president of the California Medical Association (CMA). “We cannot afford to jeopardize the future of our physician workforce.”
AMA emphasized that any policy changes must support—not hinder—the next generation of physicians. “Medical education should never be a barrier to a career in medicine,” the letter concludes. “We must safeguard the financial pathways that make it possible.”
Physicians are encouraged to visit studentaid.gov and consult their loan servicers for up-to-date guidance. CMA will continue to monitor developments and share updates as they become available.
Read AMA's letter here.