11/12/2025
This is really important to know about! Stay informed and speak up if you are opinionated about Naturopathic Medicine training options for the next generation.
The naturopathic community is facing an unexpected and deeply concerning development this week.
The US Department of Education has proposed a rule change that would exclude the Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine (ND) degree from its definition of “professional degree,” dramatically limiting ND students’ access to federal student loans.
If enacted, this would sharply reduce federal aid, push future students into high-interest private loans, and ultimately shrink the pipeline of trained naturopathic physicians, clinicians who play a critical role in root-cause, nutrition-focused, lifestyle-based medicine.
As someone who has spent my career working alongside NDs, teaching them, and watching them transform patient lives, I find this profoundly troubling. Our healthcare system is already strained, and removing support for a profession delivering evidence-informed, preventive, integrative care does not serve patients or public health.
Many of you have noted that RFK Jr. has historically expressed support for naturopathic medicine and our shared emphasis on prevention and whole-person care.
That makes this moment even more disappointing.
Regardless of where any of us fall politically, undermining access to ND education is a step in the WRONG direction for a healthcare landscape that desperately needs more practitioners trained in nutrition, lifestyle, environmental medicine, and functional approaches, not fewer.
This is not about politics.
It’s about workforce, access, and the future of integrative medicine in this country.
If you’re an ND, work with NDs, or simply believe in the importance of training clinicians who understand systems biology, nutrition science, environmental exposures, and the drivers of chronic disease, now is the time to speak up.
The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) has created a simple portal to contact your representatives. It takes under two minutes, and your voice matters, especially before the public comment period opens.
Comment ND ADVOCACY and we’ll DM you the link or head to https://naturopathic.org/page/LegislativeActionCenter #/ to take action now.
Regardless of our individual backgrounds, MD, DO, ND, NP, PA, nutritionist, researcher, or student, we are all working toward the same goal: advancing a healthcare model that addresses root causes, honors biology, and improves lives.
Let’s stand together in protecting the training pathways that make this possible.
