Education Department freezes student loan payments for 8M borrowers

The Education Department will suspend student loan payments and interest for around 8 million borrowers after a Thursday court order blocked the Biden administration’s latest repayment program.

Agency officials said they would freeze the loans of borrowers enrolled in the program, known as SAVE, until appeals finish winding through the courts. The plan lowers monthly payments for almost all enrolled and offers loan forgiveness for certain long-time borrowers. The order further upends President Joe Biden’s promise to tackle high loan payments for students weighed down by debt.