ACR Urges Congress to Address Workforce Challenges Before Year’s End

The American College of Radiology® (ACR®) joined multi-society sign-on letters to leaders in Congress, urging their inclusion of bipartisan workforce legislation in any end-of-year legislative package.

In a communication to U.S. House and Senate leadership, ACR and about 40 other organizations expressed support for the Conrad State 30 and Physician Access Reauthorization Act (H.R. 4942/S. 665) and the Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act (H.R. 6025/S. 3211).

The Conrad State 30 and Physician Access Reauthorization Act (H.R. 4942/S. 665) is legislation that would reauthorize a long-standing program that incentivized approximately 20,000 physicians to practice medicine in rural and underserved areas. Created in 1994, the Conrad 30 Waiver Program provides states with the opportunity to waive the standard two-year foreign residence requirement for resident physicians from other countries training in the U.S. on J-1 visas, provided they commit to working in medically underserved areas. The Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act (H.R. 6025/S. 3211) would initiate a one-time recapture of up to 40,000 already existing and unused employment-based visas — 25,000 for foreign-born nurses and 15,000 for foreign-born physicians — to help address staffing shortages.

A separate communication  was sent to Reps. Tom Suozzi (D-NY) and Morgan Luttrell (R-TX), who convened a working group to develop Bipartisan Common Sense Solutions for Immigration and Border Security. ACR, with others, thanked the congressmen for including the Healthcare Workforce Resilience Act in framework released earlier this year, and asked for consideration of the Conrad 30 program as Congress tackles immigration legislation impacting the physician workforce.

ACR continues to engage with Congress to address physician workforce challenges. For more information or if you have questions, contact Ashley Walton, ACR Government Affairs Director.