By Jeanine Lynch on March 24, 2026
Category: Health Policy & Advocacy

ARN Health Policy Digest - April 2026

  We are pleased to present the April issue of the ARN Health Policy Digest. This member benefit provides updates on health policy and legislative and regulatory developments that may be of interest to rehabilitation nurses.

ARN Submits Comments on Department of Education Proposed Rule

ARN submitted comments on the Department of Education's proposed rule: Reimagining and Improving Student Education that excluded nursing from the definition of a professional program for graduate students, therefore limiting the amount of loans graduate nursing students can take out. ARN submitted comments on this proposed rule explaining the importance of ensuring that nursing students have access to robust loans for graduate school programs to help bolster the already struggling nursing workforce and ensure that patients have access to necessary care. The proposed rule limits the federal loans a professional graduate student is allowed to take out $20,500 each year with a lifetime cap of $100,000, opposed to a "professional" degree which has an annual limit of $50,000 and a lifetime cap of $200,000. ARN commented that these loan limitations disproportionately harm students from underrepresented and economically disadvantaged backgrounds, additionally reducing the diversity of the nursing workforce, and threatening the stability and quality of healthcare delivery nationwide. ARN supported various other letters from nursing community organizations such as the Nursing Community Coalition which supported these asks. Enter your text here ...

ARN's FY 2027 Appropriations Priorities​

As the fiscal year (FY) 2027 appropriations season moves forward, ARN continues to support the nursing community's asks to support nursing research, the nursing workforce, and for traumatic brain injury programs. For FY 2027 ARN is supporting the ask for $610 million for the Title VIII Nursing Workforce Programs at the Health Research and Services Administration (HRSA). This ask will include funding for the Advanced Education Nursing Grants, Nursing Workforce Diversity Grants, Nurse Faculty Loan Program and more. For the National Institute of Nursing Research, ARN is supporting the ask for $215 million dollars to fund essential nursing research on cost-effective and high-quality health care. ARN also supports $150 million for the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) that will ensure a comprehensive program of research related to the rehabilitation of individuals with disabilities. Lastly, ARN will support the funding lines put forth by the Brain Injury Association of America as they release their requested FY 2027 funding for the Federal TBI State Grant Program, the P&A Grant Programs, and the CDC's TBI Programs.

NIH Dollars are Finally Flowing​

Although we are already half of a year into FY 2026, and a month after the FY 26 appropriations cycle wrapped up, the National Institute of Health (NIH) is finally receiving its apportionment. After a congressional oversight hearing, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approved NIH's apportionment. The agency is now able to spend the $48.7 billion in funding it was appropriated for this fiscal year. This holdout on funding, combined with the long appropriations process has stalled many NIH grants. In a hearing with NIH director Jay Bhattacharya on Wednesday, House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) asked Bhattacharya to commit to accelerating the dispersion of grant funding for this fiscal year to ensure that the approved funding dollars get spent appropriately. Enter your text here ...

 Notice of Funding Opportunities​

Below is a list of other funding opportunities for interested ARN members.