I recently heard about possible federal legislation forgiving student loan debt for frontline health care workers. My son, who is a medical resident working the frontline fighting against COVID-19, researched it and found this below. There is also a petition going around on MoveOn.org that has almost 600,000 signatures.
Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) will introduce new legislation to forgive student loan debt for frontline health care workers who are fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. The Student Debt Forgiveness for Frontline Health Care Workers Act, says Maloney, will alleviate a financial burden for medical professionals and help attract other health care workers to help respond to COVID-19.
“Medical professionals in hospitals and other medical settings are operating in extraordinarily difficult and dangerous circumstances to provide care for critically ill COVID-19 patients and protect our communities,” Maloney said. “…The least we can do to recognize their service is to forgive their graduate student loan debt so that they are not forced to worry about their financial well-being in addition to their health and the health of their families while they respond to a public health emergency.”
Obviously it would be great for my son, but from the stories he tells me, these people are literally putting their lives on the line every single time they walk into the hospital — and regardless of what you are hearing, they are STILL doing it without appropriate PPE. Most of the newly graduated medical students have already left for their residencies without a break to start the fight again in another hospital. Their coworkers and friends are dying from this disease and they are all scared. And by the way, the students, interns and residents do this either without pay or literally a pittance that isn’t meant to live on. They must take out loans to live. I would like to promote this to our residents, press and especially government officials. Who do you think it’s best directed to?
Thank you for any advice you can give me,
Janet Anderson
(Editor’s note: Please contact Senator Ted Lieu’s office for more information about the possible legislation: janet.turner@mail.house.gov.)