September 28, 2021
The Honorable Judy Chu
2423 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative Chu:
The undersigned organizations would like to thank you for sponsoring H.R. 4631,
the Protecting Our Students by Terminating Graduate Rates that Add to Debt Act(POST GRAD Act). This bill would reinstate eligibility for graduate and professional
students with financial need to receive Direct Subsidized Stafford Loans, which are
now only available to undergraduate students.
Dental student debt has been rising at abnormally high rates for decades, even afteradjusting for inflation. It has risen to the point that dental school graduates are now
starting their careers nearly $305,000 in debt ($270,125 for graduates from publicdental schools and $349,730 for graduates from private dental schools). 1
The vast majority of dental students use federal student loans to pay for dentalschool. Over 75 percent use federal Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, and another 72
percent use federal Grad PLUS Loans—either as a stand-alone financing
mechanism or to make up the difference between what the Direct Stafford Loan didnot cover.
If enacted, H.R. 4631 would reinstate eligibility for graduate and professional
students in need to use federal Direct Subsidized Stafford Loans. These subsidizedloans were originally available to graduate and professional students with a financial
need. Today, however, they are only available to qualifying undergraduate students.
Direct Subsidized Loans have slightly better borrowing terms than the educationalloans available to graduate and professional students. For example, the interest
rates are generally lower. The Department of Education also pays the interest thataccumulates while borrowers are in school, during a grace period, and during aperiod of deferment.
This bill will not solve the student debt crisis, but it will help offset the unprecedented
financial challenges that these essential health care providers face at graduation.
Combined with reinvigorated public service loan forgiveness programs, it may also
inspire more highly indebted young dentists to practice in underserved areas.
We applaud you for sponsoring this meaningful legislation and are pleased to offer
our enthusiastic support. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Megan

The Honorable Judy Chu
September 28, 2021
Page 2Mortimer at the American Dental Association. Megan can be reached at 202-8982402 or mortimerm@ada.org.

Sincerely,
American Dental Association
Academy of General Dentistry
American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology
American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology
American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry
American Academy of Periodontology
American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research
American Association for Women Dentists
American Association of Endodontists
American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons
American Association of Orthodontists
American College of Prosthodontists
American Dental Education AssociationAmerican Student Dental Association
Hispanic Dental Association
1 Istrate EC, Slapar FJ, et al., Dentists of tomorrow 2020: An analysis of the results of the 2020 ADEA

Survey of U.S. Dental School Seniors, J Dent Educ, February 2021; 85: 427-440.