In June, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) changed federal guidelines so that any facility, from hospital to private practice, can apply for an HHS Waiver for foreign physicians, as long as the facility has a Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) score of at least 7, and the physician will provide primary care treatment.
This change opens up a qualified pool of U.S.-trained foreign physicians for healthcare institutions in qualifying areas – to determine if your facility qualifies, click here.
What does this mean for you?
Expansion of the HHS Waiver is significant because, unlike the Conrad 30 Visa Waiver, there is no cap to HHS waiver issuance. Not only will this take pressure off the Conrad program for institutions that qualify for both, but the HHS Waiver also increases availability to healthcare providers that did not qualify under Conrad’s strict guidelines. Additionally, because there is no waiver cap, the HHS Waiver should be considered a more reliable solution to address physician shortfalls.
HHS waivers are a win-win for foreign physicians and underserved communities, improving patient care and outcomes with more fully staffed hospitals and providing valuable work and cultural experiences for these foreign physicians. If your healthcare institution relies on Locum Tenens physicians to serve patient populations, creating an immigration hiring strategy for your institution can save hundreds of thousands of dollars over a short period of time.
Would you like to learn more?
FordMurray has helped place dozens of foreign physicians in New England hospitals, and we have seen firsthand the positive impacts on our healthcare partners. We work with your HR team and/or general counsel to make the process seamless and to answer questions that arise. We only practice immigration law, with a focus on hospitals and healthcare providers, and we have decades of experience helping healthcare leadership stem physician shortages in their organizations.
No two healthcare institutions are the same, so we offer a complimentary consultation to talk about the specific needs of your institution. We are excited about this development and what it can mean for healthcare delivery in rural and other medically underserved areas. Please contact us to schedule a complimentary consultation – we would be happy to help.
