Policy Updates

Since its founding in 1955, NASW has worked to advance the social work profession and improve policies that directly impact the lives of social workers and their clients. Through dedicated advocacy and public policy efforts, NASW has tackled legislative challenges, fought for better policies, and expanded access to critical mental health services. Dina Kastner, MSS, MLSP, NASW’s Public Policy and Advocacy Manager, shared insights into the organization’s work on key initiatives and some of the challenges faced.   Pushing for the Improving Access to Mental Health Act   For nearly a decade, NASW has been advocat...

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Yesterday, the Biden-Harris Administration announced that over 1 million public service workers, including social workers, received student loan debt cancellation through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program during their administration.

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On October 3, 2024, a Trump-appointed judge in Missouri ruled in favor of the Attorneys General in eight states, led by Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey to block a yet-to-be finalized rule from the Biden-Harris Administration that aimed to provide student loan debt relief to millions of borrowers.

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Long before the issue of student debt dominated national headlines, the Student Borrower Protection Center (SBPC) and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) have been working to address the crushing weight of the student debt crisis. We both have a long and proud history of fighting for borrowers. In 2019, we shed light on the thousands of social workers and other public service workers who were falling through the cracks of the broken student loan system and pushed further away from the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) relief they were entitled to under federal law. Our efforts led to the historic PSLF Waiver in 2021, which has helped nearly 876,000 public service workers finally achieve debt relief.

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Information from NASW coalition partner, the National Consumer Law Center

Starting May 1, 2024 the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) repayment program will be transitioning servicing from MOHELA to the Department of Education’s StudentAid.gov platform. During this transition from May 1, 2024, through July 31, 2024, all processing of forms and other PSLF information will be paused.

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Information from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
Many student loan borrowers have an opportunity to receive full student loan cancellation or more credit towards cancellation. The U.S. Department of Education will conduct a one-time adjustment this summer, but you may need to take steps to qualify.
The deadline to act is April 30, 2024. Here’s what you need to know; this information is also available as a printable flyer from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

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On November 8, 2023, the Senate Finance Committee advanced key social work priorities as part of the Better Mental Health Care, Lower-Cost Drugs, and Extenders Act, which passed out of committee. NASW thanks Chairman Wyden (D-OR) and Ranking Member Crapo (R-ID) for holding the markup and Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), our longtime champions and sponsors of the Improving Access to Mental Health Act of 2023 (S. 838) for making sure provisions of the bill were included in the markup.

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NASW applauds the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for allowing clinical social workers (CSWs) to receive Medicare reimbursement for Health Behavior Assessment and Intervention (HBAI) services beginning January 2024 through its Physician Fee Schedule final rule (https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2023-24184.pdf on page 547).

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On August 22, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) plan to help student loan borrowers lower their monthly student loan payments.

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Although the U.S. Supreme Court on June 30, 2023, struck down President Biden’s plan to cancel up to $20,000 of federal student debt for 40 million borrowers, the Department of Education’s (ED) July 14 Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) Account Adjustment announcement and President Biden’s June 30 “Plan B” response to the Court’s ruling offer alternative ways to cancel and reduce student debt.

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