Senate just voted on something that's going to change your healthcare for the next 30 years. It's not about insurance or drug prices - it's about who gets to become your doctor.

The Senate just passed the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," and buried in its hundreds of pages is a change that will make medical school financially impossible for anyone who isn't already wealthy. This isn't some distant policy debate. This is about whether your future neurologist understands what it's like to choose between medication and groceries.

Back to the "Good Old Days" When Only Rich Kids Could Be Doctors

Here's what Congress just did: they capped federal student loans for medical school at $150,000-200,000 and completely eliminated Grad PLUS loans. Sounds like fiscal responsibility, right?

The problem is that medical school costs $286,000 for public schools and $391,000 for private ones. The math doesn't work anymore.

We're going back to the 1950s model where medicine was a career only for people whose families could write a check for nearly half a million dollars. Back when your doctor was guaranteed to come from privilege and had never worried about money a day in their life.

The Real Story Behind Rising Costs

Debunking the "Loans Drive Up Tuition" Myth: AAMC analysis shows that after Grad PLUS loans were introduced in 2006, medical school tuition growth actually slowed compared to the previous four years. Since 2020, medical school tuition has grown slower than inflation, while living expenses increased faster than inflation.

Medical School Tuition Growth vs. Inflation

Source: AAMC Analysis of Medical School Costs

What This Means for Your Migraine Care

Think about the last time you dealt with insurance denial for your migraine medication. Remember explaining to your doctor why you can't afford the $900-a-month Nurtec? Or fighting through prior authorization requirements while you're in pain?

Now imagine that conversation with a doctor who's never had to choose between medication and rent. Someone who's never had to explain to anyone why they can't afford the "better" treatment option. Someone whose family paid cash for medical school.

The doctors we're about to create have never lived in your world. They won't understand the real-world constraints that shape your healthcare decisions every day.

The Questions That Won't Get Asked

When your doctor has never worried about money, they don't think to ask:

• How much will this medication cost you out of pocket?
• Should we start the prior authorization process now to avoid delays?
• Do you need samples to get through the coverage gap?
• Is there a generic alternative that works nearly as well?
• How are you managing financially with chronic illness?

These questions come naturally to doctors who've lived these experiences. For wealthy doctors, they may be afterthoughts - if they come up at all.

The Diversity We're About to Lose

Right now, about half of medical students need the federal loans that Congress just eliminated. These aren't lazy kids looking for handouts - these are brilliant people who happen to come from families that don't have $400,000 lying around.

These are the future doctors who:

• Grew up in rural areas and planned to return to serve their communities
• Come from immigrant families and understand cultural barriers to care
• Have lived with chronic illness themselves and actually get what you're going through
• Know what it's like to ration medication because of cost
• Understand that "just try not to stress" isn't helpful advice when you're working three jobs

The Specialties That Will Disappear

Many medical students choose primary care or specialties like neurology partly because of loan forgiveness programs that help them serve underserved communities. The bill guts these programs too.

So not only are we limiting who can become doctors, we're making it financially impossible for them to work in the areas where we need them most.

In 10-15 years, your migraine specialist will come from a completely different world than you. They'll have never experienced the healthcare system as a patient who struggles. Never had to advocate for themselves when dismissed.

The Medical Community is Fighting Back

This isn't just my opinion. The entire medical establishment is opposing these changes.

"Every aspiring physician deserves a fair chance at a medical education — no matter their economic background. Federal student aid programs like Grad PLUS loans and Public Service Loan Forgiveness help make that possible for nearly half of all medical students. Eliminating or restricting these critical programs would undermine the future physician workforce and ultimately make it harder for patients in communities nationwide to get the care they need." - AAMC President and CEO David J. Skorton, MD

When the entire medical education establishment is united in opposition, that should tell you something about how devastating these changes will be.

The Clock is Ticking

The House still has to vote on this bill. It could happen as early as this week, before July 4th. That means you have days, not weeks, to act.

What to Say

Why This Works

Phone calls to D.C. offices get logged and counted. When staffers see high call volumes on specific issues, it influences how representatives vote. Your representative needs to hear that their constituents care about this issue.

Use their online contact forms if calling feels intimidating. Social media posts that tag them directly also get attention. The key is making contact and being specific about H.R.1.

Share This With Your Community

Every chronic pain patient, every person who's fought insurance denials, every family that's struggled with medical costs needs to understand what's happening. This affects all of us.

Share this with every migraine patient you know. Post it in your support groups. Send it to friends with chronic conditions. Time is running out, and we need every voice.

Your future doctor's understanding of your struggles is being decided right now. Make your voice heard.