Shutterstock
If you’ve found yourself with less hours or even unemployed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, you might be searching “jobs near me” while practicing social distancing. This is far from ideal, but, if you’ve got student loans, there is some good news on the way.
On Friday, the Department of Education confirmed earlier reports that Trump wanted to waive student loan interest rates accruing during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier in the week, Trump mentioned that he wanted to institute some kind of relief for borrowers. Friday’s announcement clarified what his administration will be doing.
Friday, the Department of Education clarified what their plan for the student borrower relief would be. Starting retroactively on March 13, the federal government is waiving all interest rates and penalties for two full months. Effectively immediately, borrowers are all getting a sixty-day reprieve from payments during the pandemic.
This will result in millions of people with student loans getting a break. Student loans are likely some of their biggest bills. For people struggling with underemployment or even unemployment, this is likely a massive weight off of their shoulders. At least, for the time being.
The CDC recommended that social distancing be practiced for at least eight weeks to allow for a slower pandemic. This type of slow pandemic is less likely to overwhelm medical facilities. This will give doctors more time to develop treatments for those with the disease.
While a slow pandemic might be harder to accomplish – due to the difficulties of social distancing – it will have a lower mortality rate than a fast pandemic.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in late February in the US, the Trump Administration has been taking surprisingly progressive steps. They are protecting society’s most vulnerable groups.
There is still much work to be done to ensure the safety and economic security of every American citizen. But the coronavirus pandemic has proven that moves like waiving student loan interest rates are completely possible for the federal government.
Progressive politicians like Bernie Sanders have long called for moves like canceling student loan debt as a way to address income inequality in the US. It is telling, then, that amidst a crisis, the staunchly conservative Trump administration would make concessions along those same lines.
Many have wondered if this pandemic will serve as a catalyst for more progressive, societally-conscious policies becoming the norm in the US.
