Family member who is disabled.w/ student loan debt – Just asked this but needed to expand on my question:?
December 2nd, 2011 | 
Author: “elo!” asked:
(Deleted question due to hacked link – After full scan, I am resubmitting question)
My family member was hit head-on by drunk driver (in 1978). Complications of frontal lobe brain injury have developed into bipolard disorder and severe mental impairment (SMI). All these years he has tried to stay employed, but he cannot keep jobs any longer. Frontal lobe brain injury affected his ability to concentrate and understand social behavior, etc. In 1982, impulsively, he took out student loans, could not cope with school demands and dropped out. The family did not know (until now) he had taken out student loans from some For-Profit-School (loan sharks if you ask me took advantage cause his injury is very obvious). He became homeless in 1994, and just ignored the student loans. He moved to another state, and was able to find odd jobs all these years. With aging, the effects of his injury made it impossible for him to handle working any longer. He lost his last job 2 years ago because of behavior issues. He was advised via medical/psych care to apply for disability. All of the sudden, Dept of Education calls him wanting $75 per month to repay loans (why did they not contact him before when he was working!!!!). He wants to repay, but even if he gets disability it will be @ poverty level.
(Deleted question due to hacked link – After full scan, I am resubmitting question)
My family member was hit head-on by drunk driver (in 1978). Complications of frontal lobe brain injury have developed into bipolard disorder and severe mental impairment (SMI). All these years he has tried to stay employed, but he cannot keep jobs any longer. Frontal lobe brain injury affected his ability to concentrate and understand social behavior, etc. In 1982, impulsively, he took out student loans, could not cope with school demands and dropped out. The family did not know (until now) he had taken out student loans from some For-Profit-School (loan sharks if you ask me took advantage cause his injury is very obvious). He became homeless in 1994, and just ignored the student loans. He moved to another state, and was able to find odd jobs all these years. With aging, the effects of his injury made it impossible for him to handle working any longer. He lost his last job 2 years ago because of behavior issues. He was advised via medical/psych care to apply for disability. All of the sudden, Dept of Education calls him wanting $75 per month to repay loans (why did they not contact him before when he was working!!!!). He wants to repay, but even if he gets disability it will be @ poverty level.
Can he still apply for discharge. Also, I could not find information about Income Contingent Plan in the student aid website.
School Loans Consolidation
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Consolidating Credit Card Debt
I know it’s tough. I was on disability during ten years of repayment of the student loans (first they took from IRS refunds and then when on disability they took from my disability benefits check and they collect until you’re either totally disabled or dead) but mine were federal loans. If it’s the US Department of Education who wants the money back then his are federal too and it doesn’t matter if the for-profit-school were sharks or not. Of course we can all look back to the “I should haves” like should have paid them when we were employed or make sure the USDE knew where we were so they could take money from our checks or offset our income taxes but that’s all in the past now. The money is owed and they are determined to get it one way or another. They want it paid in full or the payments will be paid as requested for 25 years. There is supposed to be a 25 year law out there somewhere but you just can’t get the USDE to adhere to the laws, or at least I can’t. If you look at the different cases wherein former students have taken their collectors (can’t take the USDE to court) to court to cancel out the debt in bankruptcy (they don’t discharge in bankruptcy) they don’t win and the USDE doesn’t care if a person is at poverty level. I suspect by now interest has built up and the bill is a hearty one. When the disability was applied for that’s a federal program and it triggered the federal loan program to find your family member. You mentioned he didn’t finish school so they would be wondering also what he spent that money on. So it’s time to pay the piper.
When a person receives disability initially they receive a SSI check. I was allowed to keep mine, so when he gets his he would have to use it wisely. I understood that you couldn’t save but $2,000 of it so the balance should be used wisely since that’s all he would get in a lump sum.
You ask about a discharge (can’t be discharged in bankruptcy). I remember seeing some form on the USDE student loan website wherein with a doctor’s signature (that he has difficult problems) “might” (no promises) allow any offsets to stop or deduct less. Seems to me though that if they didn’t take any offsets yet the man might be able to get one of those William D. Ford student consolidation loans which “might” lop off some or all of the interest if he agrees to make certain payments. Check into that.
College Student Credit Card Debt
He can still apply for a discharge, but it may or may not be approved at this late date.