03/19/2026
International medical graduates (IMGs) make up about one in four practicing physicians in the U.S. and are often the backbone of care in underserved areas with higher rates of poverty and chronic disease. Without this legislation, this exorbitant fee that employers must pay for H-1B visa holders adds significant costs for hospitals and private practices, making it more difficult to hire physicians and other health care professionals. The added cost will worsen physician shortages, increase wait times, and force patients to travel farther for care.
International medical graduates are essential to meeting the projected U.S. shortage of 86,000 physicians by 2036 and ensuring Medicare patients and underserved populations have timely access to care. Independent physician practices, Federally Qualified Health Centers, Rural Health Clinics, and nonprofit hospitals are already struggling to keep up with patient demand.
In response, Representatives Mike Lawler (R-NY), Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), and Yvette Clarke (D-NY) have introduced this bipartisan legislation to protect physicians and our country's most vulnerable patients.
Act now! Tell your representative to co-sponsor H.R. 7961 and urge them to co-sponsor this lifesaving legislation.
If this fee remains, thousands of patients and physicians will suffer. Join us and lend your voice today to ensure that international medical graduates can continue providing the high-quality care that all Americans deserve.
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