APTQI Commends New Legislation to Exempt Healthcare Workers from Onerous Visa Fees
Bipartisan lawmakers recently introduced a bill that would exempt physicians and other healthcare professionals – including physical and occupational therapists – from the $100,000 fee for H-1B visa petitions, which is making it extremely difficult for American employers to fill critical gaps in the workforce at a time when the nationwide healthcare workforce shortage is reaching crisis levels.
Led by Representatives Maria Elvira Salazar (FL-27), Mike Lawler (NY-17), Yvette Clarke (NY-09), and Sanford Bishop (GA-02), the H-1Bs for Physicians and the Healthcare Workforce Act (H.R. 7961) aims to help reduce workforce disruptions and shortages that have been exacerbated by the $100,000 H-1B visa fee for international medical graduates – the vast majority of whom have earned their degrees or completed clinical training in the United States.
Under the current policy, medical and healthcare professionals do not qualify for an exception from the $100,000 fee. If H.R. 7961 becomes law, it would prohibit H-1B filing fees for healthcare workers to exceed existing fees written in U.S. Code, which are approximately $5,000.
APTQI supports this exemption for healthcare workers to reduce the shortage of clinicians and improve Americans’ access to care, especially in rural and underserved areas where practices cannot afford a $100,000 fee to recruit and retain staff.
Last year, APTQI signed a stakeholder letter urging the federal government to exclude physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech-language pathologists from the restrictions outlined in the Proclamation on “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers.”
In a recent guest blog post, APTQI member and CEO of Spear, Dan Rootenberg, highlighted how physical therapy practices in high-need areas have participated in the H-1B program to address critical staffing shortages, as internationally trained physical and occupational therapists play a key role in maintaining patients’ access to vital rehabilitative services while supporting our strained American workforce.
Please encourage your legislator to cosponsor this important legislation today.