A federal judge has blocked part of a Trump administration plan that would have limited access to loans for students pursuing graduate degrees in nursing, physical therapy, public health and some other fields.
The American Association of Nurse Practitioners, one of the groups that sued, described the ruling in a Facebook post Thursday as “an important step for NP students, the future health care workforce and the patients who depend on them.”
At issue are caps on federal student loans that were passed as part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act and set to take effect in July.
While graduate students could previously borrow loans up to the cost of their degree, the new rules set limits. Programs that were designated as “graduate” programs face a loan cap of $100,000, while professional degrees are capped at $200,000.
The Education Department defined the following fields as professional programs: pharmacy, dentistry, veterinary medicine, chiropractic, law, medicine, optometry, osteopathic medicine, podiatry and theology.
Eight groups sued, representing nurse practitioners, therapists, public health workers, speech language pathologists, physician assistants and more. All were left out of the new definition.
The groups alleged that students would be forced to forgo their education or accept burdensome private loans.
In pausing the Education Department’s definition of a “professional degree” late Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell found issue with the agency making updates that added “more stringent requirements" to the definition. Those new requirements include that professional degree holders ”must work free from another professional’s supervision.”
Howell said Congress didn't give the Education Department this authority and raised concerns that a loss of opportunities for prospective students would be "detrimental to the public, particularly in underserved communities that may face a shortage of healthcare and other critical professional services.”
The ruling doesn't stop the loan caps, just the updated definition of a profession degree.
The Education Department said in a written statement that it is “reviewing the order and will take appropriate action.” It previously defended the caps on student loans, saying they were already incentivizing colleges and universities to lower tuition.
A lawsuit filed by a coalition of Democratic-led states that also challenges the caps is still pending.
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FILE - The U.S. Department of Education building is seen in Washington, Dec. 3, 2024. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
FORT COLLINS, Colo. (AP) — Police on Thursday arrested two Colorado men, including a former county coroner, for allegedly mishandling at least two dozen decomposing bodies and other remains found behind a hidden door in a funeral home.
Charges filed against former Pueblo County Coroner Brian Lee Cotter, 65, and his brother, Christopher Aaron Cotter, 60, included 125 counts of abuse of a corpse, according to a Colorado Bureau of Investigation statement.
Police arrested the men in Pueblo, and they were jailed on $1 million bond. Brian Cotter was set to appear in state court for the first time Friday afternoon in Pueblo, according to court documents.
Brian Cotter’s attorneys said in a statement to The Associated Press that he has been cooperative throughout the investigation and will continue to cooperate throughout the judicial process “in hopes of bringing closure and peace to everyone impacted by this case.”
No attorney was listed in court records Thursday for Christopher Cotter. The Associated Press left phone messages Thursday for relatives of the brothers.
Last summer, state inspectors found remains behind a hidden door in the Davis Mortuary in Pueblo about 110 miles (177 kilometers) south of Denver. The inspectors found a “strong odor of decomposition” after arriving at the business owned by the two brothers.
Brian Cotter allegedly told inspectors at the time he may have given fake ashes to next of kin who sought cremations. He resigned as coroner in September.
Investigators have identified 19 of the 24 bodies recovered plus the remains of two people whose tissue was found in containers at the mortuary site, according to the investigators’ statement.
The bodies and “numerous skeletal remains” were allegedly stored in conditions that grossly violated professional and ethical standards, the statement alleged.
Containers marked as cremains and containing "human skeletal material” were found in disarray, with many lacking proper identification, the investigators alleged.
“The evidence uncovered during this investigation reveals a complete disregard for the dignity of the deceased and the trust placed in Davis Mortuary by families in our community,” CBI Director Armando Saldate said in a statement. “We are committed to ensuring that those responsible for these actions are held accountable.”
The discovery in Pueblo came during the first inspection of Davis Mortuary under rules adopted in 2024 in response to prior crimes within Colorado’s funeral industry.
Colorado long had some of the weakest oversight of funeral homes in the nation. The state did not require routine inspections or set qualifications for people to become funeral home operators.
Numerous abuses resulted. They included nearly 200 decomposing bodies kept at room temperature in a building in Penrose, Colorado, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) from Pueblo.
Associated Press reporter Jessica Hill in Las Vegas contributed to this story.
This undated photo provided by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office shows Brian Cotter. (Gayle Perez/Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
This undated photo provided by the Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office shows Christopher Cotter. (Gayle Perez/Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)
FILE - This image from video provided by KRDO13 shows Davis Mortuary in Pueblo, Colo., Aug. 21, 2025. (KRDO13 via AP, File)
