Close to nine million people missed the first student loan payment they were supposed to make after the pandemic pause ended this fall, the Department of Education said Friday.
That amounts to about 40% of the 22 million people who had student loan payments due in October. The nearly nine million borrowers had not made their payments by well into November.
For comparison, less than 26% of borrowers missed their payment in October 2019, before the pandemic pause went into effect.
The payment pause began in March 2020 in the thick of the COVID pandemic. It ended in October after more than three years.
More than 28 million borrowers are supposed to be resuming payments, the department said in a release that took a “first look” at repayment data after the pause.
“Some are confused or overwhelmed about their options. We want to make sure borrowers know that our top priority is to support…
