Creator: Patrick Connole
Nurse Staffing Crisis Behind Union Suit vs. Trump Admin.
A number of unions have sued the Trump Administration for reclassifying what a professional degree is, potentially hurting nurses and their ability to get loans.
A coalition of unions has filed a lawsuit challenging the Dept. of Education’s new Reimagining and Improving Student Education rule, the measure that the nursing home sector is watching closely for its effect on nurses and their ability to receive educational loans at a time nursing staffing challenges remain extreme.
The coalition said the Dept. of Education rule “sets draconian new limits on the amount of federal student loans students can borrow for graduate education in some of our nation’s most critical and understaffed professions.”
Further, the unions say “it lawlessly compounds the problem by making many professional workers ineligible for the higher caps it sets for ‘professional’ students. This will severely affect degrees in advanced practice nursing, public health, social work, library sciences and more by deeming these degrees to be ‘non-professional.’ That designation will limit federal student loan support, exacerbating the staffing crisis in these public service professions.”
The lawsuit argues that the new rule illegally narrowed Congress’ definition of a “professional degree.”
The union coalition filing the suit includes the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the AFT, National Nurses United and the AFL-CIO.
Comments? Contact Patrick Connole at pconnole@parkplace.com.
