When Student Loan Policies Undermine the Healthcare Workforce Who Gets Hurt Most? Women and Minorities.

As the current administration changes federal student loan rules and redefines who meets “professional” criteria for graduate-level programs, many people see this as simply a financial adjustment. In reality the impact goes far deeper and it will be very dangerous. These changes disproportionately harm the very workforce that holds up our healthcare system—women and racial and ethnic minorities.

The results are not theoretical. They are immediate, structural, and will jeopardize patient care nationwide. 

What Happens When Students Get Private Loans?

When students must rely on private loans, borrowing becomes more expensive and harder to qualify for. Private loans usually have higher interest rates, require credit checks or co-signers, offer fewer repayment protections, and don’t provide income-based repayment or forgiveness options. This increases long-term debt, delays home-buying and family goals, and hits women and minorities hardest because they already carry more student debt and earn less in many health-care fields.

Women and Minorities Provide the Majority of Direct Care

Women represent 75% of the entire healthcare workforce, and 30–40% come from racial or ethnic minority groups. These are not abstract numbers. These are the people caring for patients in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, emergency rooms, and long-term care communities around the US.

The overwhelming majority of direct-care and advanced allied health professions are filled by women—and especially women of color. Yet we continue to see inequities in educational opportunity, wages, and professional recognition.

Women Dominate Advanced Healthcare Roles—But Earn Less

Most healthcare careers that require graduate degrees are led by women. For example:

• 90% of nurses

• 83% of social workers in healthcare

• 82% of nurse practitioners

• 70% of psychologists and mental-health counselors

• Nearly all speech, occupational, and physical therapists

These roles require advanced certification or master’s degrees—programs now more difficult to access under tightened loan rules. Most students depend on federal loans, and many graduate with $40,000 to $120,000 in debt depending on specialty.

Yet despite the educational requirements, these professions are paid significantly less than physicians.

Race and Debt: A Double Inequity

According to national nursing workforce data:

• 70–77% of RNs are white

• 11–12% Black

• 9–10% Asian

• 7–9% Hispanic

Overall, 20%–30% of RNs identify as a racial or ethnic minority—and that percentage rises dramatically among younger nurses and new graduates.

Research also shows minority students often carry higher student debt than white students, making financial restrictions especially harmful.

Healthcare Jobs That Require a Master’s or Higher

Many essential healthcare providers must complete graduate training:

• Nurse Practitioner

• Physician Assistant

• Occupational Therapist

• Speech-Language Pathologist

• Mental Health Counselor or Therapist

• Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)

• Nurse Midwife

• Nurse Educator

• Public Health Professionals (MPH)

• Orthotist/Prosthetist

• Audiologist (Doctoral)

• Genetic Counselor

• Nurse Informaticist

• Healthcare Administrator

• And More

Every one of these roles depends on graduate-level access—and nearly all of them are dominated by women.

The Pay Gap Is Already Real

Wage inequity in healthcare is well documented. National labor statistics show women earned just 83.6% of what men earned in 2023, even when working full-time. In healthcare, female physicians earn about 25% less than male physicians over their careers.

Layer race on top of gender, and the inequity widens. Women of color in healthcare consistently earn even less than white women in the same roles.

What Happens Next?

If we want a functioning healthcare system, we must protect pathways for people to train, certify, and enter the careers that literally save lives. Restricting graduate-level loan access doesn’t just hurt students—it damages healthcare safety, access, and quality for all Americans.

Imagine going to the ER with a loved one in crisis, only to discover there are no qualified nurse practitioners, physician assistants, or registered nurses available because the system made their education financially impossible. This could become reality in a world with restrictions to graduate-level loan access. 

What You Can Do

Contact your representatives. Tell them healthcare depends on accessible education—especially for the women and minorities who make up the majority of the workforce. 

These policies will affect every person living in the United States. We must speak up—while we still have a safe healthcare workforce to protect.