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Approximately $5.8 billion in debt will be forgiven.

Student loan debt has become a major talking point in the United States, as numerous people young and old have been irrevocably saddled with ever-expanding debt that many have not been able to realistically pay back. This is why many have called for the mass-forgiveness of such debt, in order to give these people a chance at properly rebuilding their lives without a constant drain on their finances.

This week, a major instance of debt forgiveness has been announced. The Biden Administration announced yesterday that the debts of over 560,000 students who attended a Corinthian College, a chain of for-profit universities that have become controversial for their predatory financial practices, will be forgiven. Altogether, this will account for approximately $5.8 billion in student loan debt, the largest loan forgiveness ever made by the US Department of Education.

“As of today, every student deceived, defrauded and driven into debt by Corinthian Colleges can rest assured that the Biden-Harris Administration has their back and will discharge their federal student loans,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said. “For far too long, Corinthian engaged in the wholesale financial exploitation of students, misleading them into taking on more and more debt to pay for promises they would never keep.”

Breaking News: In its largest student loan forgiveness action ever, the U.S. Education Dept. will cancel $5.8 billion owed by students of Corinthian Colleges. https://t.co/S5MKUs6KIB

— The New York Times (@nytimes) June 2, 2022

Numerous Corinthian students were already eligible for debt forgiveness, but due to a convoluted application system used by the chain, were not able to properly file for refunds. Thanks to this announcement, the refund process will be entirely automated. Additionally, any current or former Corinthian students that still have a debt balance will receive refunds on any payments they have already made in addition to the balance itself. Unfortunately, though, the Education Department will not be able to give refunds to any students that have already paid their loans off in full.