Legislative Advocacy | Federal Policy

The AHM Coalition engages in Advocacy and Federal Policy through it's partner organizations and directly via outreach to legislators and engaging in public comment opportunities through negotiated rulemaking. See below for updates.

Update March 18 2026:

Stay Tuned for Updates on Future Public Comment Opportunities and Legislative Outreach to Protect AHM Education!

We will be providing updates, guidance and templates for outreach to legislators on student loans and professional degree designations (March-April) and on Public Comment opportunities in relation to the DOE AHEAD Committee earnings and accountability metrics (April-May). Check back for more and sign up to receive updates!

Update March 3, 2026:

AHM Coalition Provides Public Comment on DOE Proposed Rules - RISE Committee

The AHM Coalition responded to the DOE Negotiated Rulemaking Notice of Public Rulemaking (NPRM) on March 2, 2026 to address proposed rules on student loans limits and profressional degree designations.

Read the Letter

Update February 23, 2026:

Call for Action! | Protect AHM Education & Access to Student Loans

Deadline: Monday, March 2, 2026

Docket ID: ED-2025-OPE-0944

The U.S. Department of Education has issued a proposed rule that could affect federal student loan access for licensure-leading Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine programs, along with many other health professions. If not addressed, the proposal could significantly reduce loan limits for AHM students and create new barriers to entry into the profession.

We urge you to:

Submit an institutional comment
Encourage faculty and administrators to submit individual comments
Share this opportunity with students, alumni, and clinical partners

CCAHM has prepared comment templates to make participation straightforward.

Broad participation matters, and we hope the entire community will respond before the deadline.

Questions? Contact Kristin Richeimer at kricheimer@ccahm.org.

Access Details, Templates & Submit Comments

Update February 11, 2026:

The U.S. Department of Education has released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) following the work of the Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee to implement recent federal student loan changes enacted under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

The proposed rules would revise graduate and professional student loan limits and restructure elements of the federal loan and repayment system, with potential implications for students enrolling in Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine education programs beginning Fall 2026 (in addition to other health professions).

The AHM Coalition, including staff and subject matter experts from its individual member associations, will share additional guidance to support interested parties in submitting informed, substantive public comments that reflect positions intended to best support the profession and the communities we serve.

Please stay tuned for coordinated communications related to the public comment process and outreach to legislators.