Trump's student loan rate cut excludes most of the 9 million borrowers in default

The Education Department on Thursday announced a reduction in interest rates for federal student loans, describing it as part of a plan to make higher education more affordable.

With growing numbers of borrowers in default, the Trump administration pitched the temporary, 1% reduction in student loan interest rates as a salve for those struggling with repayment.

Education Undersecretary Nicholas Kent said the change is a way of "making student loan repayment easier than ever" and of improving "the overall health of the federal student loan portfolio."