One big issue here is that F-1 students must maintain residency in order to be eligible for OPT.
This is secondary to the fact that if you're a PhD student on an F-1, you literally live in the US; you aren't just popping over for a few weeks now and then. The current situation basically forces people who have lived in the US for nearly 10 years to suddenly leave the country.
Thanks for pointing out Optional Practical Training (OPT), that's a good point. That might be a good thing for the feds to waive (once things go back to normal).
On the second point, usually PhD students with that much seniority aren't taking a lot of regular classes anyway; by 10 years, you should definitely be post-candidacy. By that point you should be working on your dissertation and "classes" should mostly consist of 1-on-1s with your advisor.
> by 10 years, you should definitely be post-candidacy.
Yes sure, 10 years was perhaps a stretch. But anyone who has lived in the US pretty much continuously for 5 or 6 years (undergrad plus the first couple of years of grad school, or possibly at the end of an MIT MEng, which is often 4+2) is likely as integrated as they're ever going to be at that point.
5 years or 10 years doesn't really make that much of a difference: it's still going to have a huge impact on students who consider the US their home.
These students should not be considering the college their longterm home anyway. They aren't supposed to be putting down roots. They are students. It's supposed to be a temporary thing where you earn the degree and then move on to the next chapter of your life.
This is secondary to the fact that if you're a PhD student on an F-1, you literally live in the US; you aren't just popping over for a few weeks now and then. The current situation basically forces people who have lived in the US for nearly 10 years to suddenly leave the country.