Educational Changes and The Reality

On June 3, AAPA and PAEA filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education to overturn a final rule that threatens the future of PA education and the healthcare workforce. November 2025 the Department was at this time debating excluding PA students from higher loan limits. Since then, the Department created updated requirements that further excluded PA students from the professional student category even though previously our profession was existing under the professional degree category. The RISE rule reclassifies PA programs and reduces their maximum federal student loans to $20,500 annually.

How Will This Affect the Future of the Profession?

Reducing loan support for PA education will likely result in fewer applications to programs and may even lead to fewer new programs launching and stagnant class sizes. From a broader perspective, this can only negatively impact patient access to healthcare, particularly in rural areas. It is important for the profession to continue fighting for educational and financial support, and the profession as a whole remains optimistic that this lawsuit will have a positive outcome.

Is It All Bad?

While lawsuits can take years to resolve, in the interim there may be one silver lining within the surgical specialties. Given a PA's unique training and ability to first assist in surgery, we may see salary stabilization tied to the operating room, or even salary increases, as the supply of capable first assists remains static.