Student Loans and the CARES Act: Here's How Coronavirus Relief Will Actually Work by Kaitlin Mulhere In the span of two weeks, the government’s coronavirus assistance for student loans escalated quickly: first, it was waiving interest on some student loans, then suspending payments for two months, and then, most recently, stopping payments for six months. About one-in-six American adults carries student debt, and they owe an average monthly payment of nearly $400.