U.S. Medical Field Faces Exodus as Policies Discourage Foreign-Born Physicians
WASHINGTON – New policies and a shifting climate are prompting foreign-born doctors to reconsider practicing in the United States, potentially reversing decades of reliance on immigrant physicians to bolster the nation’s healthcare system. The trend is causing significant distress within the medical community, with some doctors even contemplating returning to their home countries.
Recent reports indicate a growing sense of uncertainty and grief among foreign-born doctors currently working in the U.S. “It was terrible to see,” recounts Dr. Liu, who holds a green card after marrying an American citizen. “One of them definitely started to tear up, and the other one immediately stepped out to call their family.” He added, “It feels like my contributions - just because I was not born in this country – are less valued. I really hadn’t thought so deeply about going back home before,but definitely it’s been much more top of mind.”
The impact is particularly acute in underserved areas. According to research co-authored by Dr. Liu and published in JAMA last month,approximately 11,000 doctors – roughly 1% of the U.S.physician workforce - are on H-1B visas. Though, in some communities, that figure rises to as high as 40%. High-poverty and rural counties are disproportionately reliant on these physicians, with a four times higher prevalence of H-1B doctors compared to other areas.
The U.S. has historically relied on foreign-born doctors, a trend that began in 1965 with the creation of Medicaid and Medicare. “Overnight,you have,you know,25 million,approximately,people who can now access health care services,” explains Eram Alam,a professor of science history at Harvard,describing the immediate impact of expanded healthcare access.In the decade following 1965,the U.S. granted visas to 75,000 physicians, and by 1975, immigrants comprised approximately 45% of all U.S. doctors – exceeding the number of U.S.-trained physicians entering the workforce annually.
Now, that reliance is threatened. Dr. Julie Gralow, chief medical officer for the American Society of Clinical Oncology, states that the U.S. is “undoing a lot of that by dismantling its global leadership role in medicine.” she notes a dramatic shift in perception: “Up until this year,it was a dream,a wish that you could get a job and you could come to the U.S. and, you know, you could get the research funding. And now nobody wants to come.”
Other countries, including China, Denmark, Germany, and Australia, are actively capitalizing on the situation, recruiting American doctors and medical researchers.Gralow warns that the loss of talent will have lasting consequences for American patients, impacting healthcare for generations to come.
The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to requests for comment on its policies. Ther are currently 325,000 foreign-born doctors in the U.S., excluding nurses and other critical healthcare workers.
