Student debt was specifically addressed in the federal government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic through forbearance polices. However, not all individuals were eligible for forbearance, and it is possible that forbearance would leave some feeling further behind. Yet, little is known about student loan debt over the course of the pandemic, especially in relationship to forbearance policies, loan payments, and household financial stability. Leveraging a representative longitudinal survey of households during the pandemic, we use descriptive regression techniques to explore changes in loan balances throughout the pandemic, as well as the relationships among student loan policies, payments, and measures of financial well-being. We find that the negative effect associated with not being able to take advantage of forbearance polices was exacerbated for disadvantaged households during the pandemic. We also found that households who were required to make student loan payments were more likely to experience financial hardships.