The US has suspended the issuance of visas to nurses: this will have a bad impact on healthcare

The State Department has effectively frozen visas for foreign nurses until the end of the fiscal year due to high demand. This, according to medical organizations, threatens to worsen staff shortages in hospitals, nursing homes and other large medical institutions, the newspaper writes. The Hill.

Nurse preparing syringe and nurse

In the July Visa Bulletin, the agency announced that nearly all available green cards for which nurses are eligible have been distributed. The exception is for people who applied before December 1, 2021: they will be able to continue with visa interviews even if applicants already have a job offer in the United States.

The State Department said it would likely need to push back the final decision date or make this visa category "unavailable" in August.

Medical organizations said foreign nurses will now face long waits for opportunities to work in the United States.

This comes amid a serious shortage of nurses in American healthcare settings. State health officials approved a rule requiring nursing homes to hire about 20 new registered nurses over five years.

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“The severe shortage of nurses is increasing burnout among those in the workforce,” said Patti Jeffrey, president of the American Association for International Healthcare Recruitment (AAIHR). “This latest visa freeze is stopping the flow of qualified nurses from overseas at a time when American hospitals need them most.” The only way to fix this is through Congress."

Foreign nurses make up about 15% of the medical workforce. They can enter the country on an EB-3 visa, a green card for permanent residence, which includes all occupations that require at least an associate's degree, but not a master's degree.

However, the immigration quota has not changed since 1990, despite economic and demographic growth. The State Department limits the total number of EB-3 visas to 28,6% of all employment-based visas, which is about 40 per year.

According to the department, an immigrant visa must be available to the applicant both at the time the application is submitted and at the time a decision is made on the application. When there are more applications for a particular visa category or country, the eligibility date is pushed back.

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Since almost all immigrant nurses who applied before December 2021 have already had their documents processed, this means the visa process is closed, AAIHR said.

Health care organizations are calling on Congress to take action to return unused immigrant visas and make them available to nurses and doctors. But political divisions over immigration make any decision difficult. Therefore, the fate of the bill “Health Workforce Sustainability Act” is not yet clear.

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