By the time the debt is eligible for forgiveness he’ll be 50 years old or more. Then, when it is forgiven, he’ll owe over 700k in taxes.
They made some big mistakes there. He used forbearance, putting off payments while the interest still accrued. He also says he didn’t like to think about the loans, ignoring them as they racked up. IMO, you have to always actively manage any debt you take on.