AUPHA Advocacy - Current Issues

Though it is rare, AUPHA engages in advocacy efforts that benefit healthcare management students, faculty, and the profession as a whole. These efforts often relate to issues that could affect the workforce pipeline and diminish the affordability and accessibility of higher education.

This page contains the current issues affecting healthcare management practice and healthcare management education. Another page dedicated to past issues is currently under construction.

CURRENT ISSUES

The issues currently listed on this page are as follows:

Student Loan Caps (US ED)

Coming Soon:

Accountability: Financial Transparency and Gainful Employment (US ED)
H-1B Visas (DHS)

STUDENT LOAN CAPS

HR1: One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), signed into law on July 4, 2025, introduces new federal loan limits for graduate and professional studies. Part of the bill required the Department of Education (ED) to engage in rulemaking to determine which graduate degrees are classified as "professional" and are thus eligible for the higher capped amount.

The Issue

The US Department of Education’s (ED) Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee advanced a proposed definition of “professional degree programs” under OBBBA that excludes health administration degrees like the MHA, MHSA, MBA, MPH, MPA, and others, as well as most other health professions programs. This change could restrict access to federal loan support for most health professions and weaken the pipeline of healthcare management practitioners to our communities.

The Association of University Programs in Health Administration is leading national advocacy to ensure that healthcare administration degrees remain recognized and supported as "professional".

What You Can Do

Stay Informed

The proposed definition is not yet final. The RISE Committee’s recommendation will lead to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), followed by a public comment period. Once the NPRM is posted, we recommend submitting comments to ED.

At least four bills have been drafted since October to address the limited scope of “professional” degrees as recommended by the RISE Committee. They are as follows:

Bills including healthcare

management:

Bills that do not include

healthcare management:

Bills still awaiting final text:

HR 6574: Loan Equity for Advanced Professionals (LEAP) Act, sponsored by Representative Tim Kennedy (D – NY): this bill would adjust student loan caps for advanced degree students by setting the same borrowing caps for all graduate and advanced professional students rather than using the current tiered structure.
HR 6677: Professional Degree Access Restoration Act, sponsored by Representative Ritchie Torres (D – NY): this bill would reverse the reduction in federal loan availability for graduate and professional students enacted under OBBBA.

HR 6718: Professional Student Degree Act, sponsored by Representative Mike Lawler (R – NY): this bill is intended to clarify which programs count as “professional” degrees by establishing a statutory definition of professional degree programs in federal student loan law.

HR 6739: To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to expand the definition of professional degree, sponsored by Representative Debbie Dingell (D – MI): this bill would add more degrees to the definition of "professional," though it is unclear until final language is published if healthcare management will be included.
HR 6862: To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to delay, until July 1, 2030, the termination of authority to award certain Federal Direct PLUS loans and the implementation of limits on certain loans for graduate and professional students enrolled at institutions with certain public health designations, and for other purposes, sponsored by Representative Josh Harder (D - CA): this bill would delay implementation of some or all of the caps (unclear until final language is published) until July 1, 2030.

All bills related to education introduced in the 2025-2026 Congress session can be found here.

Consider Adding Your Voice

As a member of the healthcare management academy, student or alumni of an AUPHA member program, a healthcare executive, or AUPHA partner/friend, you can support advocacy efforts as specified above by writing to your Congressional representatives or participating in public comment when the NPRM is released. You can also voice your support of the coalition’s efforts on social media. 

You can send this pre-drafted message to your members of Congress about the ED definition. You can also ask your members of Congress to support one of the bills listed above.

Explore Alternative Funding Options

Scholarships, institutional aid, private scholarships, work–study or employment-based funding, employer tuition support, or part-time enrollment might become more important if healthcare management is not included in the final list of “professional” degrees.

Frequently Asked Questions

These FAQs outline the proposal, its impact on student aid, and key advocacy timelines.

AUPHA's Advocacy Efforts

View this document to learn more about AUPHA's advocacy efforts on this issue, which include communication with members, an independent letter sent to the Department of Education, and joint letters sent to members of the ED as part of two different coalitions of organizations.