Rep. Schiff, Grijalva Reintroduce Bill to Forgive Student Debt For Seniors and Disabled Individuals
Washington, D.C.— Today, Representatives Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) and Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.) reintroduced legislation to forgive student loan debt for disabled and older individuals. The Student Loan Relief for Medicare and Social Security Recipients Act would forgive student loan debt dating back more than 20 years for current Medicare and Social Security Disability Insurance participants and future enrollees.
“The student loan debt crisis is not just a challenge for young borrowers. Millions of seniors and Americans with disabilities have also been forced to tap into their Social Security or disability benefits to pay back their student loans, long after they’ve finished college. Some seniors have even had their payments garnished,” said Rep. Schiff. “I’m introducing legislation to forgive student loan debt dating back more than 20 years for current and future Medicare and Social Security Disability Insurance enrollees. This is an important first step in our work to ensure that seniors and those with disabilities can focus on their health, well-being, and living a life of dignity.”
“A disproportionate number of older Americans – women, people of color, and lower-income individuals – are struggling with student loan payments, even having social security benefits garnished to repay them. Yet, instead of working to provide critical relief for people crippled with student loan debt in this demographic, the House Republican majority wants to undo the progress made by the Biden administration to forgive student debt for all Americans,” said Rep. Grijalva. “That’s why today I’m joining Congressman Schiff and my Democratic colleagues to introduce the Student Loan Relief for Medicare and Social Security Recipients Act. I’m proud to support this legislation that will forgive millions in loans for disabled and older Americans enrolled in Medicare and Social Security Disability Insurance and safeguard their hard earned benefits.”
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), more than 3 million Americans aged 60 and older owed more than $86 billion in unpaid student loans in 2019. Data available from 2017 showed that number was $66.7 billion just two years prior. Today, 3.5 million Americans 60 and older hold over $125 billion in student loan debt, according to a report from New America. The number of borrowers among this 60-plus age cohort has risen sixfold since 2004, with the amount of outstanding debt increasing 19-fold.
In June, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Biden’s proposal to eliminate billions in student debt for working class Americans. That decision has increased the weight of student loan payments for many Americans and seriously harmed upward economic mobility, as COVID-19 era student loan payment pauses have expired.
The legislation is co-sponsored by Representatives Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.), Jimmy Gomez (D-Calif.), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), and Jill Tokuda (D-Hawaii).
To read the full bill text, click HERE.
###